Pandemic plays into hands of secondary car market in Tatarstan

Pandemic plays into hands of secondary car market in Tatarstan
Photo: realnoevremya.ru

How it was growing (and whether was it?) secondary car market in 2020

According to the results of the “coronavirus” year 2020, the used car market showed a certain growth both in Russia as a whole and in Tatarstan. This is evidenced by the study published Avito.Avto on 12 January. At the same time, if in Russia the growth was 7% compared to last year, in Tatarstan — only 1%.

The leaders in sales growth among the regions are Novosibirsk Oblast, where 39% more cars were sold than in 2019, Altai Krai, where sales increased by 31%, and Krasnoyarsk Krai, where the growth in the number of cars sold was also slightly less than 31%.

At the same time, the data published by Avto.ru (part of Yandex) indicate different results of the secondary market. According to the portal, it remained at the level of 2019 and only slightly (by how much — it is not specified) were in plus. However, according to the study of Avto.ru, the primary market has sunk by 7,7%.

The authors of the study by Avito. Avto explain the growth of the secondary market in Russia by the rise in the price of new cars, delayed demand after a period of self-isolation, as well as interruptions in the supply of new cars from manufacturers. Photo: realnoevremya.ru

The authors of the study by Avito. Avto explain the growth of the secondary market in Russia by the rise in the price of new cars, delayed demand after a period of self-isolation, as well as interruptions in the supply of new cars from manufacturers. The increase in cost occurred both due to increased demand and due to currency fluctuations and the associated increase in costs of most car market players.

It is interesting that the authors of the study operate with the same factors.

“When the country imposed restrictions due to the pandemic, sales almost stopped. In June, after their easing, due to delayed demand and another fall in the ruble, Russians began to actively buy cars. As a result, in 2020, the sales of new cars were significantly higher than experts predicted in the spring, and the secondary market went into a plus," says Anton Zabannykh, CEO of Yandex.Vertikali.

How new and used cars became more expensive

The average price of a used car in Russia in 2020 was 290,000 rubles — by 7% more than a year ago, according to Avito. Some models in the secondary market have risen in price more, according to the data of Avto.ru: among them, for example, Lexus RX (plus 20,3%), Volkswagen Tiguan (plus 23%), Mercedes-Benz CLA and G-class (plus 31%). And many popular models in 2020 were more expensive than they were new 3 years ago.

Prices have also increased for very old cars, and for some models — more strongly than for the market as a whole. For example, Zaporozhets rose in price by 29,4%, VAZ 2101 — by 32,4%, and Volga — as much as one and a half times.

In Tatarstan, the average cost of a car in the secondary market is slightly higher than in Russia, according to the data of Avito. Avto, — 315,000 rubles.

The top most popular in Tatarstan includes domestic VAZ (LADA) Kalina and VAZ (LADA) 2114 Samara for more than a year, analysts of Avito add.

As for new cars, according to Avto.ru, the price for them has increased by 10% over the year, the strongest rise in price is observed in premium brand models, as well as those whose production is not localised in Russia. These include, for example, Cadillac and Jeep — they rose in price by 13% and 17%, respectively, as well as Mercedes-Benz — these cars rose in price by a quarter.

By Alexander Artemyev
Tatarstan