TIRANA, Oct. 6 – The number of car imports registered a considerable 21 percent increase in the first half of this year, despite fuel prices failing to reflect the sharp cut in international oil prices.
Data published by INSTAT shows imports of personal cars grew by 21 percent to 33,920, in the first half of this year, compared to the same period last year.
Car imports, the overwhelming majority of which second-hand ones, registered a record high in 2014 when more than 70,000 passenger cars, mostly second-hand ones, were imported to Albania, according to INSTAT.
Car concessionaires operating in Albania have previously warned they are on the brink of bankruptcy with their sales having sharply fallen since a new law lifting customs duties on second-hand cars entered into force a in late 2011. The Association of 16 car concessionaires operating in Albania says the import of new cars has dropped by 60 percent since changes to the national taxes made import of second-hand cars cheaper and easier in July 2011.
The number of personal cars increased from about 295,000 in 2010 to 378,000 in 2014. Albania increased its motor vehicle number per 1,000 inhabitants to 143 in 2014, up from 112 in 2010, says INSTAT.
