Overview of Uzbekistan’s Automobile Market in 2021

In Uzbekistan, Uzavtosanoat, a state-owned automobile company, accounts for the bulk of the sales in the domestic automobile market. In 2021, automobile production in Uzbekistan dropped 15.2% year-on-year to 241,649 units, the first decrease in six years. Passenger vehicle production declined 15.5% to 236,667 units, while commercial vehicle production slightly increased, up 3.7% to 4,982 units.

Uzbekistan: Recent Developments

Market Trends

・In 2021, UzAuto Motors, a state-owned subsidiary of Uzavtosanoat, delivered 235,900 units for the domestic market, down 15.8% year-on-year. - In addition, there is the imported vehicle market, where one third of automobiles is reportedly imported from China. The latest models, such as the Škoda Kodiaq, are being sold in partnership with the VW Group. ・In February 2022, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev ordered a reduction of tariffs on imported vehicles from the current 30% to 15%.

Industry Trends

・Automobile production in 2021 15.2% year-on-year to 241,649 units. - Although commercial vehicle production slightly increased, up 3.7% to 4,982 units, passenger vehicle production declined 15.5% to 236,667 units. ・The production scale of UzAuto Motors decreased due to unstable supply of semiconductors. As a result, orders in 2021 had a waiting period of up to six months until delivery. In response to this situation, in February 2022, President Mirziyoyev requested UzAuto to increase the production pace and eliminate the waiting list for delivery as soon as possible. In order to meet domestic demand, UzAuto faced the task of producing 160,000 units in the first half of 2022 and 275,000 units for the full year. - UzAuto has optimized the welding process and the paint shop, increasing daily production from 963 units to 1,037 units. - Negotiations with GM International and a number of microchip manufacturers allowed for additional supplies of semiconductors, increasing the volume of supplied kits from 14,000 to 20,000. ・ADM Jizzakh, a privately-owned company in Jizzakh Region, started SKD assembly of Lada and Renault passenger vehicles in 2021. Although the factory’s annual production capacity of up to 100,000 units, its operating scale was 10,000 units in 2021. - The factory plans to switch to CKD assembly in 2023.

Economic Trends

・The GDP growth rate in 2021 was 7.4% year-on- year (IMF, as of April 2022). The growth forecast for 2022 has been lowered from 6% to 3-4% (IMF, as of April 2022). - Since Russia is a major trading partner of Uzbekistan, there are concerns that economic sanctions imposed on Russia by Western countries may affect Uzbekistan.

Political Trends

・Incumbent President Mirziyoyev was re-elected in the October 2021 presidential election. - This is his second term which will end in 2026.

---