Peugeot UAE targets 5% share of automobile market by 2015

Peugeot will increase its market share in the UAE from 1 per cent to 5 per cent by 2015, eyeing a double-digit profit in 2012, according to Khalifa Bin Omair, chief executive officer of Omair Bin Yousuf & Sons. Omair also said that his company is expecting a 100 per cent year-on-year growth amid expectations of growth in auto sales in the UAE of about 6-8 per cent throughout this year. "We are working hard to increase our market share in the Middle East markets and in the UAE. Thirty-two per cent of our cars exported to the Middle East are sold in the UAE and 32 per cent are sold in Lebanon," he said. Jamal Sahl, regional general manager of Peugeot Middle East, said that while 2009 witnessed a substantial drop in all Middle East markets, the company was upbeat about the future. The GCC automotive market fell 15.6 per cent [but] the good news is that we were witnessing a slow recovery in some markets such as Saudi Arabia, Syria and Egypt," he said. Upward trend "Automotive sales in the UAE have begun to show signs of an upward trend as they follow the resurgence in the country's economy." Ashwani Shiv, divisional manager of Peugeot, said the UAE is a vital part of Peugeot's strategy, pointing out that in the past couple of years a conscious effort has been made to target Emiratis and Asian expats. "We are expecting a growth in sales in the coming year to reach 8 per cent, although it was only 4 per cent in 2010," Shiv said. The 20 per cent down-payment issue which was imposed by the Central Bank affected sales in May, June and July, leading companies to resort to other means to increase car sales.