Auto sales drive to new highs
However, while sales growth has reached record highs, experts say the figures are not sustainable, as much of the buying is rooted in a desire among consumers to acquire vehicles before anticipated EU-driven price hikes and new regulations borne of the country's accession.
Between January and April of this year, 143,624 cars were sold in Poland, including 45,115 in the month of April alone - a staggering year-on-year rise of 45 percent in a single month, according to auto analysts Samar.
Echoing a new sales profile established in the market last year, Toyota's sales figures were in third place behind Škoda, with traditional leader Fiat remaining in first place.
One analyst firm foresees a more than six percent decrease in sales of new cars this year as a result of new EU taxes causing price rises. However, the economic growth forecast for this decade across the Central European region is anticipated to bring a quick sales rebound followed by an almost six percent new-car sales growth each year over the next five years.
Economic prosperity, especially in the cities of Poland, will translate into greater disposable income. Car companies and sales observers alike expect that 'new money' will be spent on new cars, the all-important status symbol that they are.
In December, Erich Papke, president of BMW Poland, told the Business Journal, "Hybrid consumption is already emerging in this country. People are saving on value-for-money goods while indulging on branded goods that improve their image, their identity."
Similarly, Uto Harumichi, president of Suzuki Motor Poland, spoke of the thirst among Polish consumers to express their new upward mobility by driving a new car. "Four-wheel drive vehicles can be a tool to express identity," explained Harumichi. "I believe in the future of these vehicles, not because they are practically necessary in Poland, but because of the image that driving such a car can present."
In February, Toyota announced that it was growing faster in Poland than anywhere else in Europe. "[Car magazine] Auto Świat has claimed that Toyota has 'The best network in Poland,'" said Jacek Pawlak, General Director of Toyota Motor Poland, in its assessment of the firm's success in the Polish market.
Changes in customs charges for cars produced outside the EU benefit Japanese importers, as Poland comes into line with EU law, and may yet bring Toyota closer to first place in Polish sales figures.
New car sales in general are being boosted in Poland by the high price of imported used cars coming from the rest of the EU. Excise tax - in the form of a registration fee - on imported used cars is up to 65 percent, while used cars derived from Poland are free of this tax.
This situation has brought complaints about Poland to the European Commission. Article 90 of the EU treaty prohibits the use of customs taxes that inhibit the free movement of goods throughout the free market. However, the Finance Ministry is arguing that the trade regulations are fully in line with EU law, so whether this will change is yet to be seen.
Between January and April of this year, 143,624 cars were sold in Poland, including 45,115 in the month of April alone - a staggering year-on-year rise of 45 percent in a single month, according to auto analysts Samar.
Echoing a new sales profile established in the market last year, Toyota's sales figures were in third place behind Škoda, with traditional leader Fiat remaining in first place.
One analyst firm foresees a more than six percent decrease in sales of new cars this year as a result of new EU taxes causing price rises. However, the economic growth forecast for this decade across the Central European region is anticipated to bring a quick sales rebound followed by an almost six percent new-car sales growth each year over the next five years.
Economic prosperity, especially in the cities of Poland, will translate into greater disposable income. Car companies and sales observers alike expect that 'new money' will be spent on new cars, the all-important status symbol that they are.
In December, Erich Papke, president of BMW Poland, told the Business Journal, "Hybrid consumption is already emerging in this country. People are saving on value-for-money goods while indulging on branded goods that improve their image, their identity."
Similarly, Uto Harumichi, president of Suzuki Motor Poland, spoke of the thirst among Polish consumers to express their new upward mobility by driving a new car. "Four-wheel drive vehicles can be a tool to express identity," explained Harumichi. "I believe in the future of these vehicles, not because they are practically necessary in Poland, but because of the image that driving such a car can present."
In February, Toyota announced that it was growing faster in Poland than anywhere else in Europe. "[Car magazine] Auto Świat has claimed that Toyota has 'The best network in Poland,'" said Jacek Pawlak, General Director of Toyota Motor Poland, in its assessment of the firm's success in the Polish market.
Changes in customs charges for cars produced outside the EU benefit Japanese importers, as Poland comes into line with EU law, and may yet bring Toyota closer to first place in Polish sales figures.
New car sales in general are being boosted in Poland by the high price of imported used cars coming from the rest of the EU. Excise tax - in the form of a registration fee - on imported used cars is up to 65 percent, while used cars derived from Poland are free of this tax.
This situation has brought complaints about Poland to the European Commission. Article 90 of the EU treaty prohibits the use of customs taxes that inhibit the free movement of goods throughout the free market. However, the Finance Ministry is arguing that the trade regulations are fully in line with EU law, so whether this will change is yet to be seen.
