Only 60,360 new cars were sold in Colombia last year, a sales rate which would see the country’s fleet replaced only every 30 years, writes Juan Carlos Vargas.
2000 was a tough year for Colombian vehicle assemblers and importers, who struggled to make a profit in a year when local currency devalued 16 percent against the U.S. dollar, inflation was 10 percent and unemployment reached 21 percent. But the main problem was consumer perception: the population is sceptical about the peace process with Colombia’s guerrilla movement and reluctant to make major purchases.
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Six brands accounted for 80 per cent of the Colombian market in 2000: Chevrolet, Mazda and Renault (all locally assembled) and Daewoo, Hyundai and Ford (all imported) accounted for 48.394 units. The leader was General Motors’ Chevrolet (20,508) which captured 34 percent of the market, growing its share by 2.9 percent from 1999 and selling 11.3 percent more cars.
Second, a long way behind, was Renault with 7,934 sales for 13.1 percent of the market, a share growth of 2.9 percent and volume growth of 31.2 percent. Third-placed Daewoo, however, had a bad year, losing 1.2 percent of market share and 7.4 percent sales volume.
The market’s overall growth of just 1.8 percent reflects Colombia’s GDP growth of 3.5 percent in 2000, after two years of negative figures.
Colombian automotive market
Year 2000 sales
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Author: Juan Carlos Vargas is a freelance journalist in Bogota, Colombia
