Home East Africa Cost of Second Hand Cars in Kenya Goes Up as Shilling Slides

Cost of Second Hand Cars in Kenya Goes Up as Shilling Slides

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USED CARS

(3 Minutes read)

Industry data shows that the prices of second-hand cars manufactured between 2016 and 2017 have jumped significantly, pointing to the rising cost of ordering the units from abroad that has cut expenditure on motor vehicle imports by double-digits for the second year in a row

The cost of second-hand cars has shot up by up to Sh600,000 in the last four months, driving them out of reach for more Kenyans as indicated by fresh data released.

Industry data shows that the prices of second-hand cars manufactured between 2016 and 2017 have jumped significantly, pointing to the rising cost of ordering the units from abroad that has cut expenditure on motor vehicle imports by double-digits for the second year in a row.

Mercedes C-Class tops the price surges, with a used car now going for Sh4.4 million or more, depending on the dealer, compared to Sh3.8 million in September last year. A second-hand Toyota Harrier is now retailing at Sh4 million on average in Nairobi, up from Sh3.8 million in September last year, making it costlier for its key middle-class buyers.

The price surge has been driven by the shilling whose market exchange rate to the dollar has shed 14.1 units in the period to trade at 160.4 units currently. Car models with low engine capacity such as Mazda Demio and Honda Fit, which have over the years been popular due to low prices, also recorded significant price increments in the period.

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This comes at a time when provisional data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) shows that Kenyans cut spending on car imports by USD 162 million (about Sh25.92 billion under prevailing conversion rates) last year.