Over the course of one year, the prices of used cars in Serbia have gone up by 25%.
Experts say that price growth will continue this year, but also note that a car bought five years ago can now be sold for the same price, and even for a thousand euros more than in 2018. Experts also add that that does not apply only to certain models, but that the price has jumped for all models regardless of the manufacturer.
As things stand now, prices will not decline this year, although the car dealers say that there isn’t much room for their growth and note that they might raise prices by up to 5 percent, but that a large price increase of 25 percent, like last year, is not likely to happen. They point out that the cars are simply not worth that much, i.e. that no one would want to buy them for that amount of money.
The owner of the V8 used car dealership, Jovan Radić, says that cars are becoming more expensive because the production of new vehicles is still insufficient. He notes that production is nowhere near the 2019 level because there aren’t enough semiconductors, chips and spare parts produced. He adds that one of the largest cable factories in Europe is based in Ukraine and is currently not operational.
“The driving force behind the production of new cars has been diminished and partially suspended, and all this is reflected in the market – there simply aren’t enough new cars on sale. Only when their production returns to the pre-pandemic period, we can expect the prices of used cars to fall. There is still no indication that this could happen by the end of the year. If the war stopped today, it would take time for things to return to the way they were,” Radić adds.
Radić also notes that the offer is insufficient and that once, used car dealerships had up to 400 cars advertised for sale, but now there are no more than 20.
(Euronews, 21.02.2023)
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