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Section 1 - A SHIFTING CONTEXT THAT IS DIFFICULT TO GRASP

Price, first and foremost

2 minutes of reading

AUTOMOBILE MY DEAR

In the previous Observatoire Cetelem, entitled “Cars: whatever it takes”, we took a detailed look at the impact of price on the automotive market. Here, price was described by many as a glass ceiling, and its impact was felt both when buying and using a vehicle. As a reminder, 6 out of 10 people said that the cost of vehicles, when it came to both their purchase and their use, was too high.

After energy, vehicle maintenance is the expense hit hardest by inflation.

BRANDS HAVE CAPITALISED

This sense that prices were too high reflected the fact that most brands had gambled on achieving high margins, to the detriment of sales volumes, which allowed them to make record profits.

Today, the price war seems to have resumed. Ever the disruptor, Tesla recently lowered the prices of its cars by several thousand euros overnight. Chinese manufacturers, including MG and BYD, are gearing up to launch entry-level models that will compete directly with the most popular European offerings. With their war chests now bolstered, some manufacturers say they are relatively confident about the upcoming battle. In the first half of the year, Stellantis posted profits of €10.9 billion, up 37% on 2022, with an operating margin of 14.4%, higher than Tesla’s and the highest of all the carmakers.

Sub-section 1
Editorial
For years, almost since its very inception, the automotive sector developed with little or nothing to hinder its growth and success. Any adversity, such as the oil crisis of the early 1970s, was over
< Read the previous sub-section
Sub-section 3
Energy costs, but that’s not all
To make matters worse, inflation is still high in most countries, sitting above the acceptable level set by central banks. This has negatively impacted the economic perceptions of motorists,