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Code Red for German Auto Industry, Sees Prices Jump to 50 Year Highs

German auto industry 6 photos
Photo: Yeye Agency
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The nightmare scenario that plagues the current automotive industry shows no signs of stopping, and it appears that Germany is the next nation to bend the knee in defeat. A report by the British Express detailed how the average price for new vehicles recently rose to heights not seen since the mid-1970s.
Some blame Brexit, and others blame the ongoing health crisis. Then, of course, there’s the issue of the global supply of microchips so vital to auto production having dried up for the foreseeable future.

In truth, a combination of these three events plus a host of others occurring at roughly the same time has led to a perfect storm that’s seen vehicle prices in Germany spike to levels some Germans have never seen. It’s a figure older Germans have seen before only once, in the aftermath of the great oil crisis of 1973.

Another culprit in the price hike is the ongoing European energy crisis. An event partly caused by the ongoing health situation, among a list of other endless issues that come with the territory in a global economy.

The complexity of the situation stated above goes far beyond German borders. But with the chaos surrounding the transition to a new government following the Angela Merkel administration, it would appear the German auto industry could be affected more so than in other countries. Maintaining a peaceful and swift transfer of power from one government to the next has taken priority in Germany in the short term.

Estimates peg the whole of the German auto sector to have produced somewhere around 3.6 million cars between January and December of 2021. Down almost half a million units from the year before.

Even so, with prices on all goods, not just cars going through the roof across Europe at the moment, dealerships might be hard-pressed to sell them all. That usually means significant discounts and savings on the consumer side. But in the chaos of the modern world, it’s a lose-lose situation for all parties involved.
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