Russian October Sales Spark Talk of Record 2012

Russian vehicle sales jumped 27% in October to 240,865 units for a 10-month total up 43% to 2,162,504, prompting industry speculation about record volumes next year.

Committee Chairman David Thomas, of the Association of European Businesses’ Automobile Manufacturers, says the October result indicates a stabilizing trend for the final quarter of 2011.

October sales of Chevrolet Niva CUV up 75%.

“The very strong start to 2011 means that our full-year forecast increases to 2.55 million cars and light-commercial vehicles, as we do not expect a significant slowdown in the last two months of the year,” Thomas says in a statement.

“This will mean that for the full year the total industry volume will increase by more than 30%.

Based on a 2.55 million (-unit) market this year, our initial forecast for 2012 is 2.8 million, growth of 12% compared to 2011.”

The 2012 projection approaches the 2008 total of 2.9 million deliveries, the best-ever sales year for Russian cars and light-commercial vehicles.

AvtoVAZ comfortably maintained its sales-leader position in October, as deliveries rose 9% to 77,329 units for a year-to-date total up 31% to 731,533. Its Lada models were the top four sellers.

General Motors group followed with a 35% sales gain for the month to 21,566 units. Its 10-month total climbed 63% to 198,963.

GM’s Chevrolet brand alone accounted for 15,134 deliveries, a 41% surge that pushed its year-to-date total up 55% to 142,033. The Niva cross/utility took 10th place, as sales spiked 75% for the month to 5,624. After 10 months, Niva deliveries climbed 55% to 42,072.

Ford sales rose 29% to 11,390 units in October, lifting its 10-month total 34% to 93,676.

The Focus was the seventh-best-selling model for the month with 8,541 units, up 25% from like-2010, with deliveries so far this year increasing 25% to 65,246.