Russia may block access for foreign cars from Belarus

April 5, Minsk /BELTA correspondent/. Russia may decide to introduce protective barriers for foreign cars from Belarus even before July 1. This is the opinion of Belarusian and Russian experts, according to a BELTA correspondent. "The flow of foreign cars is ongoing, so Russia may well close access for foreign cars from Belarus, as they are direct competitors to the Russian automotive industry," said Alexander Skolubovich, director of Atlant-M Holpi, an official representative of Mazda and Land Rover in Belarus. Russian automotive expert Oleg Datskiv shares the same opinion. According to him, in case of a massive flow of foreign cars from Belarus, Russian manufacturers will appeal to their government with a request to close the "Belarusian loophole." For example, cars from Belarus may cease to be registered. In this case, buyers for used foreign cars will have to be sought within the republic. According to Lyudmila Shabanova, General Director of the Automotive Association "BAA," this will simply collapse the used car market. From July 1, when customs duties for foreign cars imported into Belarus by individuals will increase, the hype around used cars will subside, and sellers of used cars may face significant difficulties in selling them. "According to the law of the market, if supply significantly exceeds demand, prices go down," noted the association's representative. In her opinion, a similar situation was observed in the car market a year ago. At that time, in anticipation of the introduction of customs duties on foreign cars for individuals, Belarus was flooded with used cars from Europe. "Moreover, some even sold apartments to buy used foreign cars with that money," the interlocutor emphasized. However, Russia only allowed cars imported into Belarus before January 1, 2010, and meeting at least the Euro-4 standard into its market. As a result, prices for used cars in the republic sharply declined from July 1, with scrap metal buyers suffering the most. For now, the used car market is not experiencing any difficulties, and prices for used cars have significantly increased. As Lyudmila Shabanova noted, unlike the official car business, the shadow automotive market is quite mobile, not constrained by legal or other restrictions. For example, most sellers in the informal market sell cars only in foreign currency, and with the money received, they can buy and import new foreign cars. Alexander Skolubovich, in turn, does not rule out the possibility that cars imported into Belarus after January 1, 2010, have already entered the Russian market. "It is possible that savvy entrepreneurs have found a way to register them," he noted. However, even in this case, Russia is unlikely to leave the "Belarusian loophole" open. -0-