Time to buy used cars as prices slump

Saudi Gazette report Jeddah — The prices of used vehicles have witnessed a sharp drop because of lucrative offers from new car showrooms which are also facing downturn in sales, according to Deputy Chairman of the Automobiles Committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry Mukhlid Al-Mutairi. This has caused used car showroom investors 13% loss of their capital, Makkah Arabic daily quoted Al-Mutairi as saying on Saturday. An earlier report said that about 30% of small investors in the automobile sector have quit the market in recent months as a result of recession and a steep fall in sales. Businessmen who have invested in the sector told Al-Madina Arabic daily that the recession has affected not only the sales of new cars but also used cars. This has led to small investors leaving the market and bringing down the prices of some cars by 22 percent. Owaidah Al-Johani, chairman of the car showrooms committee at JCCI, estimated the worldwide fall in car sales at 50% due to global recession caused by falling oil prices and hike in showroom rents. Obaid Al-Sulami, owner of a car showroom in Jeddah, pointed out that the economic slump has brought down prices of some new cars by 22 percent. For example, the price of 2017 model car is SR180,000 while the price of the same car in 2016 was SR230,000, he added.