New Year to Begin With Another Wave of Car Price Hike Bombs

With 2023 around the corner, the local car industry is alive with whispers of another wave of price hikes. The last price hike saga took place in July this year, following a massive US dollar (USD) exchange rate hike, when it went up to Rs. 240 per USD. Given another recent depreciation of PKR vs USD, history is likely to repeat itself soon.

Recently, Toyota Indus Motor Company (IMC) increased the prices of some of its vehicles. According to the latest report from the oft-reliable autojournal.pk, the frequent production cuts and rising operational costs will likely create another wave of price hikes.

Furthermore, market sources have hinted at an even more devasting wave of price hikes due to the following reasons:

• A resurgence of the dollar rate against the local currency. The rate has been on a steady and constant climb since Sunday.
• A continued rise in operational costs including production, logistics, shipping, and various other overheads.

The automakers have also witnessed a decline in revenues, which they will likely seek to restore by increasing their margins. With these developments afoot, both automakers and car buyers should brace for a bumpy 2023.