UAE auto aftermarket sales booming

Dehn said: "UAE's automotive aftermarket, spares and products offered for sale by garages and retailers, accounts for over two thirds of the overall auto parts market — the balance being sold to manufacturers as original equipment. With this position being replicated throughout the region, it's no surprise that the next edition of the Dubai based specialist aftermarket show, Automechanika Gulf, is predicting to be much larger than previous events.

This year's show attracted 305 exhibitors from 29 countries with 5,492 trade visitors attending from 71 countries, making it the largest spare parts and equipment trade fair in the Middle East. The organisers, Epoc Messe Frankfurt, have already increased the space allocation by 50 per cent in response to comparable growth in exhibitor numbers for the 2005 event, scheduled for May 28-30, 2005 at the Dubai World Trade Centre."

Dhen said: "Many of the exhibitors are now coming from Europe particularly Italy, Germany, France and the UK. This reflects the large number of new car sales from European manufacturers over the past few years, now requiring maintenance and spares.

According to the latest IMF report on the UAE, vehicle and automotive imports amount to nearly Dh15 billion ($4.1 billion) in 2002, with steady growth of 9.2 per cent, well above the GCC average at 6.4 per cent."