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Dacia Duster, the Romanian Export King

Crisis is the word of the day in Europe, with more than one nation being confronted with severe financial problems that have led to budget cuts, unemployment and, in some cases, even civil unrest. As usual in times of crisis, however, salvation is just around the corner.

In 2009, the economic downturn that swept across the world nearly brought the automotive industry to its knees. It was only then that the world realized how important this industry was for millions of people who depended on it.

Now, two years later, the industry is back on its feet and, in some cases, it even helps a given country's economy recover. In the still cash-strapped Romania, the birth place of the Logan, Sandero and Duster, the automotive industry is called Dacia. And Dacia, in the first quarter of 2011, helped the country's exports explode.

According to ZF, Dacia Duster's exports grew by 500 percent, now accounting for 50 percent of all the Dacia sales. At a larger level, says ZF, the Duster contributed, heavily, to the 40 percent growth of Romanian exports in the first quarter.

There's nothing surprising in the fact that cheap and pleasingly reliable sells. What's worrying, from the Romanian perspective, are the increasing rumors that say Renault, the mother company for Dacia, is planning to slowly move production to Morocco, where it can build the models even cheaper.

According to Romanian Dacia officials, the high expectations of the Romanian workers could no longer be met. The Moroccans, on the other hand, are cheaper to use, with the costs associated with one worker being some EUR500 lower than at Mioveni, the place where the bulk of the Dacia models are currently produced.
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About the author: Daniel Patrascu
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Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
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