“I’ve been wanting to buy a car since 2019,” says Abdelraheem Hassan, a 34-year-old Egyptian Marketing Manager. Originally from Luxor and currently based in Giza, Hassan, like many Egyptians, repeatedly postponed his decision to purchase a car due to repeated price hikes, overpricing in the market, and aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. He has been depending on Uber, Careem, InDriver, and other ride-hailing apps for his daily commute, paying an average of EGP 4,000 ($255) per month. “Despite the high prices and the overpricing, I still want to buy a car to allow me to move around freely, for more privacy, and to use it to keep different outfits or documents in case I want to go from place to place with no time to pass by home,” explains Hassan. Exaggerated pricing, and lack of regulations governing pricing mechanisms such as extra charges and overpricing for early delivery, are some of the main issues facing car dealerships in Egypt. With annual or less than annual price increase on cars, high interest rates, and continuous hikes in fuel prices, many have completely put down the idea of purchasing a car and…
Braking the Cycle of Overprices in the Egyptian Automotive Industry
March 3, 2022
