Dec 4 (Reuters) – Russia’s Soviet-era Moskvitch cars entered the country’s top 10 best-selling brands for the first time in November, data from Russian analysis agency Autostat showed on Tuesday.
Citing data from its partner PPK, Autostat announced that sales of new passenger cars in Russia in November rose 113% year-on-year to 109,706 units. Sales are recovering from a slump caused by sanctions and the withdrawal of Western automakers in 2022.
Production of Moskvitch resumed this year at a factory in Moscow. The Russian government bought the plant from Renault (RENA.PA) last year for a symbolic one ruble as the French carmaker withdrew from the market after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Moskvitch 3 model is a JAC Sehor X4 assembled in Moscow using kits purchased from Chinese partners, sources told Reuters.
Moskvitch took ninth place on the list of best-selling cars in November, with 1,910 units sold and a market share of 1.7%. According to the data, in the 11 months from January to November, 10,676 Moskvitch cars were sold.
Lada, Russia’s most popular car, topped the list in November with 32,651 units sold and a market share of 29.8%. Chinese cars occupy most of the other positions on the list, replacing departed European and Japanese brands.
Autostat data shows Chinese car sales appear to have peaked at more than 56% of the market as Russia’s domestic production recovers after the withdrawal of Western automakers.
According to Autostat, 939,254 new passenger cars were sold in Russia in the past 11 months, an increase of almost 65% year-on-year.
Reported by: Gleb Stolyarov Edited by: Alexander Marrow and David Goodman
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