Escalating prices make most brand-new cars harder to buy
Of the ten best-selling brand-new cars in the first quarter, five are in the price range that starts above R$100,000 and goes well beyond that, depending on the model. The two best sellers - Hyundai’s HB20 and General Motors’s Onix - have prices that start at R$70,000 to R$73,000. But the versions that bring the most desired sets of accessories, engine and paint easily exceed R$100,000, or they are close to this value. The valuation of used models also remains high. With the escalating prices, achieving the dream car has required many people to juggle their budgets.Calculations made by companies and consultants that follow the market indicate that last year, new and previously owned models rose between 14% and 21%. In 2021, the price of the so-called "model year" car 2022 (which is usually launched before the turn of the year) rose, on average, 18.39%, according to KBB, a company specialized in monitoring price variations in the market.A survey by Bright Consulting indicates that from 2020 to 2021 the average price of cars and light commercial vehicles had an increase of 17%, inflation adjusted, of 10.06% (Brazil’s benchmark inflation index IPCA). This means that a car that used to cost R$105,800 went to R$123,900 (discounting inflation). The prices of this same vehicle were around R$96,000 to R$97,000 between 2017 and 2019, also discounting inflation. In early 2022, a new real hike of 3.6% raised the price of the same vehicle to R$ 137,000."It is like we are back to the 1990s, when every ten days the automakers would release a new price list," says Cássio Pagliarini, head of strategy at Bright Consulting. With more than 40 years of experience in this industry before becoming a consultant, Mr. Pagliarini states that the lack of components, especially semiconductors, a constant complaint in the sector, "is a great excuse" for the price escalation.At the same time that cars are becoming more sophisticated and have been readjusted frequently, others, known in the past as "economy cars", have disappeared from the market. One of the reasons is that the consumer would no longer be interested in models that do not offer the minimum of comfort, such as hydraulic steering, air conditioning, and power locks. Another reason is the pressure that the automakers’ subsidiaries, in Brazil and all over the world, receive from the headquarters to achieve profitability. "The companies prefer to sell little and earn more," points out Mr. Pagliarini.In the list...
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