High inflation, which raised interest rates in Mexico and around the world, again increased the volume of automotive loans for 60 to 72 months, according to executives of finance companies and brands in the sector.
In the first quarter of 2023, 73,141 vehicles with 5- to 6-year financing were placed in the country, up 5.4 percent from the same period last year, the first increase by the sector for this item since 2017 registered. , show data from the Mexican Association of Automotive Distributors (AMDA).
“When we look at the information, we find that customers go for the long term, it is not the financial strategy to be offered to them, it is the propensity of the customers considering that they have to pay for home, school, Fees should pay for what the card requires, as they seek to adjust with the appropriate payment (for your budget), said Gerardo Romero, vice president of operations for Toyota Motor Sales de Mexico.
Taking into account cars sold with loans of 60 to 72 months, between January and March this year, along with cars classified as others, they accounted for over 43.1 per cent of the total number of vehicles sold with financing. represent 46.1 percent. In 2018.
Andre Medeiros, General Director of Nissan Renault Finance Mexico, told Milenio that they offer this type of loan to their customers mainly with Credi Nissan.
“We listen to customers, they are having payment issues and want more ease of action and we can make suggestions,” he explained.
While Guillermo Rosales, AMDA’s executive president, explained at a conference that the increase in interest rates will cool car sales growth in Mexico for the second half of 2023, as cars coming to market are already delivered during orders. Will be done. Epidemic.
“We anticipate that car sales growth of more than 15 or 20 percent month-on-month will not continue into the second half of the year, as comparability will be high and interest will limit financing (…) However, we anticipate that by 2023 We don’t see negative sales rates in the rest of the U.S.” Rosales explained.
Overall, in the first quarter of 2023, 211,791 cars were placed on credit in the country, a year-on-year increase of 16.1 per cent. This is the highest volume for the same period since 2020, still not over the pandemic.
Of this number, 34,347 are pre-owned vehicles, which is 13.4 per cent higher than the number recorded in the first three months of 2022.
Waiting for gigafactory
Supplier firms to the automotive industry in Coahuila have already created more than 24,000 new jobs in the unit and are expected to increase with Tesla’s arrival in Nuevo León, according to Claudio Bres Garza, Secretary of State for the Economy.
The official told Milenio that a good portion of the established automotive suppliers and assemblers in Saltillo, Ramos Arizpe and Frontera are already among the main suppliers of parts for the Elon Musk brand.
“We welcome Tesla, it will be the fourth that the state’s companies serve,” he explained.
He pointed out that these companies and Nearshoring alone will create 16,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2023, which, added to the 6,943 created in April, will exceed 24,000 new jobs.
He stressed that sectors such as home appliances, air conditioners, as well as the railway industry register significant growth and support the economy of the unit.
