New market study, "Egypt Telecommunications Report Q4 2013", has been published

Passenger car sales in Egypt have remained relatively buoyant for much of the year to date, despite ongoing political turmoil and a broader downturn in economic activity and consumer sentiment.

Over the first seven months of 2013, the latest data available from the Automotive Marketing Information Council (AMIC), passenger car sales increased 2% y-o-y, to some 112,000 units. The growth rate was stronger than this earlier in the year, and July reportedly registered a 42% y-o-y decline, lowering the year to date figure. The second half of the month of Ramadan is normally marked by high sales, but this was not the case in 2013 due to ongoing political unrest.

A number of factors have contributed to the ongoing deterioration in private consumption in the country. Inflation remains elevated and access to credit is poor. Sustained weakness in the Egyptian pound has served to erode consumer purchasing power; as domestic production dries up, imports will constitute a larger proportion of the market, and the currency depreciation will make these more expensive.

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Furthermore, consumer sentiment has been hit by ongoing political and economic uncertainty, especially for big-ticket purchases. This weak consumer environment has impacted passenger car sales, and we expect the market to continue to deteriorate over the remainder of the year.

Additionally, media reports suggest that insurance companies in Egypt are no longer willing to fully fund repairs to cars damaged in riots across the country. This may serve to dampen consumer sentiment and prompt (or exacerbate) delays to purchasing decisions until some stability returns to the country.

In August 2013, General Motors Company (GM) announced it had ceased production at its Egyptian assembly plant outside of Cairo and shut its local office due to the political situation. Also, Toyota Motor and Suzuki Motor temporarily closed their manufacturing facilities in the country. It is unclear whether Nissan Motor, BMW, or Daimler shut their Egyptian factories. Media reports suggest that most companies across the country restarted manufacturing fairly quickly, however, following an abatement in violence.

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