There may be a shortage of foreign cars in Russia, Izvestia writes. Denis Migal, founder of the Fresh Auto dealership network, predicted this prospect.
The businessman warned that foreign manufacturers may refuse to replenish their model range in Russia due to the planned increase in the utilization fee. Thus, the domestic market may lose at least some new foreign cars.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade is taking the initiative to increase the utilization fee. As planned by the department, it should grow by 25 percent – from 20 to 25 thousand rubles for cars and from 150 to 187.5 thousand for trucks.
According to Migal, such a measure could lead to a rise in the price of foreign cars by about 70 thousand rubles. This will even affect those models, the assembly of which is localized in Russia, since they depend on foreign components. “Carmakers simply do not want to introduce new models to our market because of the increased duties,” the entrepreneur noted.
At the same time, the automakers interviewed by the publication said that they do not plan to reduce the model lines presented in Russia yet.