General Motors Poland believes the worst is over for the automobile market

Representatives of General Motors Poland (GMP) and Opel Polska told a press conference that the Polish automotive market has started it's recovery. "We are expecting that in the fourth quarter demand for new cars will start increasing, however this will depend on the amount of imported second-hand cars," said Warren P. Browne, director general of GMP and Opel Polska. According to data from the automotive market research agency Samar, 25,700 cars were sold in April, which is 1,600 more than in March. By the end of April 98,700 new passenger cars were sold in Poland, which is 20.3% less than in the same period of 2001. These poor results are mostly due to a 50% decrease in demand for Fiat cars. "Despite the current results we are optimistic and we think that the market should recover in the second half of 2002," said Boguslaw Cieslar, a spokesman for Fiat Auto Poland. Fiat sold 3,300 cars in April, 600 less than Renault. Toyota, which sold 25,800 cars witnessed a 55% increase in sales from January to April. Peugeot increased its sales for the same period by 29% and Renault by 27%. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B2; Prawo i Gospodarka, p. 8; Puls Biznesu, p. 6) P.W.