Chinese companies have captured the Russian truck market: by mid-July, the combined share of Chinese brands in the truck segment from 3.5 tons reached 44% and bypassed Russian manufacturers, whose share fell to 43%. Kommersant writes about this with reference to the data of the Avtostat analytical agency.
Moreover, the share of Chinese trucks is growing rapidly: in June it was only 31%, and by mid-July it was already 44%, while the share of Russian companies in the same segment decreased from 53% to 43%. Among the brands, the leader of the segment is still the Russian KamAZ, which sold 2.3 thousand vehicles in June against 973 trucks of the Chinese Shacman brand. At the same time, sales of KamAZ fell by 28.3% compared to the pre-war period, while sales of the Chinese one increased by almost 250%. The agency notes that other Chinese brands have similar sales dynamics.
The rapid expansion of Chinese brands became possible due to the withdrawal of American, Japanese and European brands from the Russian market. We are talking about Scania, Volvo, Man, Mercedes-Benz, DAF, Iveco and Renault. There are no data on sales of these brands for 2021, but in 2020 they collectively occupied 33.5% of the Russian market. The publication claims that after the start of the war in Ukraine, the supply of these brands fell 25 times to single ones, as evidenced by customs statistics: a decrease of €96.6 thousand in March and up to €127 thousand in June.
At the same time, in general, the Russian market has shrunk by 18.8% since the beginning of the year, to 37.7 thousand trucks. Dump trucks remain the most popular vehicle in the truck segment: demand for them remains stable due to infrastructure projects that are still being implemented. The greatest decline in demand is recorded in the segment of main tractors; experts explain this by the traditionally high cost of this type of car, as well as the lack of clear prospects against the backdrop of sanctions and closed borders.
Representative of SBS Consulting Dmitry Babansky told the publication that he expects further strengthening of the Chinese auto industry in the Russian market, including through the displacement of domestic brands. The weak ruble also plays against Russian producers, which makes foreign products more competitive.
The Russian truck market stands out from the general logic of the behavior of Chinese car brands: Chinese brands of mass use are in no hurry to occupy the Russian market, fearing the low solvency of Russians.