Russia’s biggest automaker reports highest sales in a decade

Sales by Russian automobile producer AvtoVAZ reached their highest level in a decade last month, the company announced in a statement this week.

In October, the carmaker sold 40,912 Lada vehicles – both passenger and commercial – which was nearly 114% more than in October 2022, and represents the best result in the past 10 years, the company said.

Cars from AvtoVAZ’s Lada range now account for 40% of Russia’s domestic passenger car market, the statement added.

According to the manufacturer, overall Lada sales in January-October this year were 98.4% higher than in the same period of last year, with various models setting their own records.

AvtoVAZ is the largest carmaker in Russia and Eastern Europe, producing over one million vehicles per year.

The Russian automotive industry, which was heavily reliant on foreign investment and equipment, suffered a crisis last year due to the exodus of foreign manufacturers amid Ukraine-related Western sanctions. AvtoVAZ and other Russian automakers were also targeted by restrictions from Washington this year.

The automaker, however, says it is seeing steady growth in demand for domestically produced cars. In June, AvtoVAZ launched assembly operations at a plant in St. Petersburg that formerly belonged to the Japanese automaker Nissan.

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