April 27 (SeeNews) - The combined revenue of the companies operating in the automotive industry in Romania, Bulgaria and Serbia increased by 13.2% year-on-year to 32 billion euro ($35.3 billion) in 2021, following a drop of 9.2% in 2020, a report by Sofia-based business intelligence provider SeeNext published on Thursday showed.
The automotive sector is one of the biggest employers in the three countries, with 285,000 full-time employees in 2021, up by 3.7% in annual terms, according to the report titled Automotive Industry in Southeast Europe: Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia warming up the engines. The report analysed the performance of 566 core automotive companies across the three countries from 2019 to 2021.
You can download the 2024 Automotive industry in Southeast Europe report here
Romania maintained its lead in terms of electric and hybrid vehicle sales in 2022, with an 84% annual jump in new registrations of battery electric vehicles (EVs) to 11,638. Romania actively fosters e-mobility through regulatory acts that define incentives for investors and consumers, having one of the most generous schemes for individuals to purchase EVs.
Although EVs and hybrids make up a small percentage of total vehicle registrations in Serbia, the government is committed to promoting their uptake. Despite not being legally obligated by the EU regulatory framework as it is not part of the bloc, the Serbian government provides state support to manufacturers in the e-mobility sector, the authors of the report note.
For its part, Bulgaria does not provide subsidies to private consumers for the purchase of electric and hybrid vehicles, unlike most EU countries and the other major economies in Southeast Europe. Yet, the country is focused on attracting foreign investors in the e-mobility sector, as the automotive industry is considered to be of strategic importance.
Of all automotive companies in the three markets, nearly 61% were owned by foreign investors from 32 different countries. Germany and Italy were the top sources of foreign investment, with majority shareholders in 141 automotive companies. Additionally, France, the Netherlands and Turkey, also have significant interest in the region's automotive industry.
($ = 0.9059 euro)