What machinery do Ukrainians buy in times of war?

West Auto Hub office
IMAGE SOURCE: West Auto Hub

2 March 2023, 12:31

The field of machinery, commercial vehicles, and special equipment in Ukraine is important both for the reconstruction of damaged infrastructure and for the recovery of economic activity by Ukrainian entrepreneurs. Representatives of the local Auto Market Research Institute and the West Auto Hub company spoke about current trends in the import of machinery.

Vehicles older than 5 years are in the greatest demand in Ukraine. First of all, due to low price. This creates a shortage of commercial vehicles and increased demand for them. It is possible to satisfy it primarily by importing used trucks from abroad because cheap vehicles are in the greatest demand.

What trucks are imported to Ukraine?

In total, during 2022, Ukrainians purchased 19,900 trucks weighing more than 3.5 tons. This is 40.8% less than in 2021.

The majority of trucks (74.4%, 14.8 thousand) in 2022 were purchased on the domestic market. Another 18.2% (3.6 thousand) were brought from abroad and used. Only 7.4% (1.5 thousand) trucks were bought as new machines. Of this amount, 837 pcs. were converted by Ukrainian enterprises from imported machine sets or chassis.

MAN TGL (415 units) became the leader of imported used trucks in 2022. The Mercedes-Benz Atego took second place (393 units), and the popular Mercedes-Benz Sprinter (266 units) came in third.

MAN TGL - 415 pcs.
Mercedes-Benz Atego — 393 pcs.
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter — 266 pcs.
Iveco Daily (Turbo/Power) — 232 pcs.
MAN TGS - 185 pcs.
MAN TGX — 180 pcs.
MAN TGM — 155 pcs.
DAF CF — 151 pcs.
DAF XF - 143 pcs.
Mercedes-Benz Actros — 137 pcs.

What tractors are exported to Ukraine?

During 2022, Ukrainians purchased 33,600 tractor units. This is 19.3% more than in 2021. Thus, sales of tractors are one of the few market segments that showed growth at the end of the year.

The majority of trucks (52.7%, 17.7 thousand) in 2022 were brought used from abroad. 42.6% (14.3 thousand) tractors were purchased on the domestic market, and only 4.7% (1.6 thousand) were bought as new machines.

The peak of tractor unit sales was recorded in September: 4,400 cars were sold at that time. The growth of this segment started in June due to the lack of rolling stock in the parks due to the change of logistics routes. The temporary shutdown of seaports led to the fact that almost all imported goods began to be delivered by land, with the help of road transport, which turned out to be insufficient. That is why Ukrainian carriers actively replenished their fleet.

The DAF XF (8.8 thousand) became the leader of imported used truck tractors in 2022. MAN TGX was in second place (6.6 thousand), and Volvo FH was in third place (3.9 thousand).

DAF XF - 8,793 pcs.
MAN TGX – 6,605 pcs.
Volvo FH - 3,891 pcs.
Renault Magnum - 2,153 pcs.
Scania R-Series – 1,768 pcs.
Renault Premium - 1,742 pcs.
Mercedes-Benz Actros – 1,283 pcs.
MAN TGA - 1,106 pcs.
DAF CF – 1,083 pcs.
MAN TGS - 708 pcs.

What semi-trailers do Ukrainians buy abroad?

During 2022, Ukrainians purchased 35,700 semi-trailers. This is 29.7% more than in 2021.

The majority of semi-trailers (46.6%, 16.6 thousand) in 2022 were brought used from abroad. 45% (16.1 thousand) of semi-trailers were purchased on the domestic market, and only 8.4% (3 thousand) were bought new. Of this quantity, 502 units produced by a Ukrainian enterprise.

The peak of sales of semi-trailers, as well as semi-trailers, fell on September: 4,500 units were sold then. In general, the semi-trailer market is related to the sales of semi-trailers and to a large extent repeats its dynamics. Since October, after the carriers met the increased demand due to the shortage of rolling stock, a gradual decline in sales began.

Used tipper semi-trailers (4.7 thousand) were most often brought from abroad. Tent semi-trailers (4.4 thousand) and tanks (2.6 thousand) were also actively imported.

Dump truck - 4,707 pcs.
Awning - 4,392 pcs.
Tanker - 2,643 pcs.
Tilt platform – 1,944 pcs.
Van - 1,225 pcs.

The first three positions of the most popular brands of semi-trailers, "freshly imported" from abroad in 2022, were occupied by German brands: Schmitz (3.9 thousand), Krone (1.8 thousand) and Kögel (1.4 thousand).

SCHMITZ - 3 940 pcs.
KRONE - 1,830 pcs.
KÖGEL - 1 369 pcs.
SCHWARZMUELLER - 747 pcs.
WIELTON - 582 pcs.
STAS - 497 pcs.
BENALU - 431 pcs.
BODEX - 430 pcs.
FRUEHAUF - 401 pcs.
HUNGARIAN - 343 pcs.

What are the trends of the Ukrainian automotive business?

According to Julia Rykovska, CEO of West Auto Hub, with the start of a war, we had to adapt to new realities. The main task was to save the team, find new ways and solutions for business, and also help the army.

During the war, it became clear how important mobility is and how much demand there is for cars and machinery. At first, business almost completely stopped, but then the temporary cancellation of customs payments gave an impetus. Currently, there is a noticeable lull in the segment of passenger cars, but the company works with other types of vehicles.

Demand for machinery and commercial vehicles has increased due to the change in logistics routes. During 2022, customers were most interested in buying tractor units and their semi-trailers. The demand for such services remained at a high level during September-November and slightly decreased in December. It is interesting that at the beginning of the year (in January), the share of semi-trailer trucks was 0.8%, and semi-trailers - 0.7%. Already in September, these indicators were at the level of 4.1% and 2.8%, respectively. That is, the demand for such transport increased more than fourfold.

Ukrainians also purchased and delivered trucks weighing more than 3.5 tons. Among special equipment in 2022, the greatest demand was for construction, agricultural machinery, and loaders. In the conditions of the war in Ukraine, men aged 18-60 years are not allowed to go abroad, so the logistics services delivery of vehicles to Ukraine is in high demand.

In general, it is difficult to plan anything in Ukraine today, but West Auto Hub does not stop even in such conditions. From global plans, already in 2023 the company enters the international market and starts working in 4 EU countries: Poland, Slovakia, Spain and Austria.

Source: West Auto Hub