UAE auto sales set to cross 2008-peak in 2013

Automobile sales in the UAE will cross the 2008-peak volumes this year, thanks to strong recovery in the economy and increasing population, said Michel Ayat, CEO of Arabian Automobiles , distributors of Nissan vehicles in Dubai and the Northern Emirates.

Addressing a press conference in Dubai on Wednesday, Ayat said the UAE is fastest growing automobile market in the world, growing at approximately 19 per cent in the first seven months of this year.

He said around 206,000 units were sold by the end of July 2013 in the UAE and it is expected to cross 355,000 units by the end of this year. This is higher the peak sales volume achieved in achieved in 2008 when 347,900 units sold in the country.

Compared to 310,300 units sold in 2012, Ayat predicted that the automobiles sales will accelerate by 14 per cent this year to reach 355,000 this year.

According to statistics revealed by the Arabian Automobile CEO, SUV segment registered the biggest growth of 25 per cent, followed by luxury cars (20 per cent) and passenger and commercial vehicles (both 16 per cent growth).

“UAE has benefited from the influx of investments from other volatile Middle eastern nations… Dubai’s advantage on candidacy for Expo 2020 has initiated much needed economy boost with commercial, retail, real estate and tourism industries set to rise in the coming years. As a result, UAE’s automotive environment is positively affected with notable increase in demand for passenger cars and commercial vehicles,” Ayat added.

He claimed that Arabian Automobile sales are growing faster than its peers. Nissan dealer sales jumped 23 per cent compared to 19 per cent surge in industry-wide sales, he said.

“Arabian Automobiles Company (AAC) witnessed success due to new models like Pathfinder and Sentra.  Nissan has increased its share in the UAE market to 10.9 per cent,” Ayat claimed.

Ayat said GCC automobiles sales volume is estimated to reach 1.61 million this year as compared to 1.49 million sales last year, a growth of eight per cent.

Ayat was speaking at the launch of 2014 Tiida Hatchback.

Tiida Hatchback – which comes with 1.6cc and 1.8cc engines – has been placed in the C-segment and contributes nine per cent of the total sales of C-segment in the UAE, he said, adding that the vehicle commands 32 per cent market share in its segment.

The new Nissan Tiida is priced from Dh57,500 to Dh82,100, said Hassan Siddiqi, Business Head and Editor of yallamotor.com.

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