According to figures supplied by VTB analysts for TASS, the amount of vehicle loans issued on the Russian market grew by 60% in the first seven months of 2021 compared to the same period last year, with a 15% increase in July.
“The amount of vehicle loans granted on the Russian market topped 633 billion rubles ($8.6 billion), an increase of more than 60% over the same time in 2020. In the reporting period, VTB clients completed 50,500 transactions totaling over 53.7 billion rubles ($734 million), a nearly 1.5-fold increase over the previous year, according to VTB specialists. According to VTB, the market for auto loan sales increased by 15% in July compared to July 2020.
Mixed variables, including high demand for vehicles and a scarcity of new car supply, which is mostly due to a lack of microchips and components, are beginning to have an even larger impact on the Russian market, according to VTB analysts.
“Given the strong sales rates in the second half of 2020, the market will decelerate in the next months. Meanwhile, we anticipate a slight improvement in the situation with new car supply closer to the end of the year, which we believe will result in a 5% increase in market growth by the end of the year 2021,” said Vladimir Bespalov, an analyst at VTB Capital.