Country's car sale hit 4-yr low in last calendar year
Sunday, 8 January 2012
Arafat Ara
Country's car sale witnessed a four- year low in the just concluded calendar year 2011 as the prices of the vehicle went high and reached beyond the purchasing capacity of the buyers, industry insiders said.
They said following the high value of Japanese yen and US dollar, the price of cars skyrocketed over the last year.
According to the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), the number of registered motor cars was 16,927 in 2008, 21,461 in 2009, 20,690 in 2010 and it was 13,587 in 2011.
The sector insiders said the sale has dropped significantly since last year. During the period a good number of car importers and traders left the sector failing to survive.
Car House Ltd Managing Director Anwar Hossain said the sale of the vehicle decreased 60 per cent in his showrooms in 2011.
"The sale declined to 192 in 2011 from 480 in 2010 in my showrooms," he mentioned.
He said due to high price of the vehicle, buyers cannot afford the transport now-a-days.
"We pay the car exporters in dollar but the customs at the Chittagong port calculate the duty on the price in Japanese yen which increases the total taxes," said Mr Hossain who is also the ex- president of Bangladesh Reconditioned Vehicle Importers and Dealers Association (BARVIDA).
He said as the value of Japanese yen is higher comparing to US dollar, they are forced to pay more to the customs authorities to get delivery of the automobiles.
Because of the government's valuation policy, prices of the automobile have skyrocketed now, he said.
According to him, the price of a Toyota x Corolla car was Tk 14,00,000 in 2010 but now it costs Tk 19,50,000.
BARVIDA president Mannan Chowdhury Khoshru citing another reason for drop in car sale said as the expenses of daily life have gone up, a significant number of buyers from middle and lower middle class groups has abandoned the idea of buying cars.
Country's car sale witnessed a four- year low in the just concluded calendar year 2011 as the prices of the vehicle went high and reached beyond the purchasing capacity of the buyers, industry insiders said.
They said following the high value of Japanese yen and US dollar, the price of cars skyrocketed over the last year.
According to the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), the number of registered motor cars was 16,927 in 2008, 21,461 in 2009, 20,690 in 2010 and it was 13,587 in 2011.
The sector insiders said the sale has dropped significantly since last year. During the period a good number of car importers and traders left the sector failing to survive.
Car House Ltd Managing Director Anwar Hossain said the sale of the vehicle decreased 60 per cent in his showrooms in 2011.
"The sale declined to 192 in 2011 from 480 in 2010 in my showrooms," he mentioned.
He said due to high price of the vehicle, buyers cannot afford the transport now-a-days.
"We pay the car exporters in dollar but the customs at the Chittagong port calculate the duty on the price in Japanese yen which increases the total taxes," said Mr Hossain who is also the ex- president of Bangladesh Reconditioned Vehicle Importers and Dealers Association (BARVIDA).
He said as the value of Japanese yen is higher comparing to US dollar, they are forced to pay more to the customs authorities to get delivery of the automobiles.
Because of the government's valuation policy, prices of the automobile have skyrocketed now, he said.
According to him, the price of a Toyota x Corolla car was Tk 14,00,000 in 2010 but now it costs Tk 19,50,000.
BARVIDA president Mannan Chowdhury Khoshru citing another reason for drop in car sale said as the expenses of daily life have gone up, a significant number of buyers from middle and lower middle class groups has abandoned the idea of buying cars.