After 2013 recorded a decrease of 3.4% compared to 2012, sales of new and used cars from January to September this year increased by 6% compared to the same period last year.
Elfinancierocr.com notes that "... The Association of Importers of Vehicles and Equipment (Aivema) recorded that, in nine months, 27,161 units have been sold, including cars, pick up trucks, sports vehicles, vans and light trucks; 60 different brands in over 26 dealerships.
The high cost of fuel could be the main factor behind the increase in motorcycle sales, which this year will exceed 2013 figures by 20%.
The Association of Importers of Vehicles and Equipment (Aivema) expects that motorcycle sales this year will increase by up to 20% more than in 2013, due to the rebound that has been seen in demand in recent months.
Increased demand and easier financing facilities provided by the motorcycle distributors are driving sales in an increasingly competitive market.
The motorcycle market in Costa Rica has added new participants in the last three years, during which imports of these vehicles went up by 30%.
During 2014, "the Directorate General of Customs, at the Ministry of Finance registered the import of 39,475 motorcycles, just 13% less than what was purchased in 2008, before the global economic recession started and one of the peak sales moments in this market."
Between 2009 and 2013 the number of Chinese vehicles in the Costa Rican Public Registry multiplied by 9.
In the last five years, Chinese vehicles went from 0.3% of new cars registered in the country to 2.2% in 2013, according to the National Registry Office. Brands such as BYD, Changan, Geely, Greatwall, JAC and ZAP, have been gaining ground in the Costa Rican market.
During 2013 the import of used vehicles in Costa Rica declined by 45%, the biggest drop since the 2009 crisis.
Importing used cars has ceased to be a business in Costa Rica. Last year the entry of used vehicles into the country declined by 45%, the strongest decline since the 2009 crisis.
Credit facilities provided by banks and the "new rules for the import sector in relation to the tax value of the units, odometers (mileage meter), total losses and new security devices have all affected sales."
During 2012, the country imported $101.3 million worth of trucks for the transport of goods, an increase of approximately 22% compared to 2011, when the figure was $ 83.2 million.
A report on Truck Imports in El Salvador by CentralAmericaData offers a very detailed vision of the market for this product in the country. It allows an analysis of changes in consumption patterns, identification and monitoring of key market participants and a study of the price trends, among other things.
Under pressure from importers the government has lowered taxes for importing used motor vehicles, but diluted the reduction by increasing the notional taxable value.
Car dealers in Costa Rica are asking for the establishment of a new formula for calculating taxes on used vehicles.
Entrepreneurs reached an agreement to suspend a blockade they had been holding on the North American highway and this Friday will meet with the chief of Finance, Edgar Ayales to hear his response to the taxes charged on used vehicles. "Let's hope that the Treasury helps us establish a new formula for calculating taxes on vehicles. If an agreement is not reached, we will return to the streets," said Cristian Salas, a representative of the Chamber for Used Vehicle Negotiators in Grecia.
Cars between 0-6 years old will incur a 30% selective excise tax with a tax burden of 53%, and those over 6 years old will incur a tax of 48% and have a tax burden of 73%.
From a press release from the Ministry of Finance in Costa Rica:
The Ministry of Finance reported today that after reviewing the effects of the update of the value of the vehicles that has been in force since December 2012, the implementation of the new Law on Transit, and the small amount of economic activity of the vehicle import sector this year, the Unit has determined an adjustment to the tax rates applicable on selective consumption, in order to give coherence to the tax system between the new values and the tax rate.
The selective consumption tax charged on hybrid cars has dropped from 15% to 10%.
Among the reasons explaining the low penetration of hybrid vehicles in the Costa Rican market is the amount of taxes that are charged.
"New hybrid-electric vehicles under tariff headings 8703 and 8704, with cylinders not exceeding 2,000 cubic centimeters, will be able to benefit from a 20% reduction in the selective consumption tax," states the new provision.
Sellers of used cars in Costa Rica believe there is discrimination in the way the Ministry of Finance estimates import taxes on cars.
According to Jose Carballo, president of the Costa Rican Automotive Chamber, the industry complains that 52% is charged for new vehicles, while used cars which are over six years old are charged 79%.
"The tax burden is calculated using a ranking system, explained the Director of Taxation, Carlos Vargas, this means that vehicles from zero to three years old pay 52.29%, four to five years 63.91% and six years or more 79.03%", reported Nacion.com.
The fall in the number of imported used vehicles has continued in the first five months of this year, falling by 40% compared to the same period in 2012.
According to data provided by the Ministry of Finance, the reduction was seen mainly in cars and a little less on vehicles used to transport goods. As for the import of new cars, they were also reduced, going from 17,306 in the first five months of 2012 to 16,425 in the same period in 2013, a reduction of 5%.
The market share of Chinese brands has recently reached 2.8%, but is growing rapidly, based on lower prices than traditional brands.
Car imports from China grew by 197% up to September 2012 compared with the 2011 figures.
Despite the rebound, China still represents a very small number of the total imports, 2.8%, equivalent to $12.5 million. From Japan, the country from which most of the cars were imported up to September last year, the figure was $147 million.
The Toyota distributor in Costa Rica is expanding in the U.S. market through the acquisition of two car dealerships in Texas.
Purdy Motor, besides being one of the leading automotive dealerships Costa Rica, has already been operating in Mexico since 2005, with a car dealership in Saltillo.
Elfinancierocr.com reports that Purdy acquired all of the assets and properties of two car dealerships in Bryan and Madisonville Texas, that is to say "two properties, the one in Bryan measuring 41,700 meters square and the one in Madisonville 23,400 square meters. In both places they are able to expand (by about 40,000 square meters) and the Costa Rican company plans to do so especially in the region of Bryan where they are close to a highway that has grown with hotels, gas stations, and is 90 minutes to Houston airport. "
Facilities for granting loans for new cars is encouraging the market for new cars and reducing the one for imported used ones.
From January to September 2012 imports of new cars in Costa Rica grew by 29% compared to the same period last year. At the same time, the number of imported cars fell by 7%.
An article in Nacion.com reports that according to information from the Ministry of Finance, between January and September of this year 24,269 new cars were imported by agencies, almost 90 per day, on average. While the number of used cars admitted was 20,296, an average of 75 per day. This data only includes cars (and excludes vehicles for transporting goods).