The appreciation of the US dollar exchange rate against the Egyptian pound over the past few months has led to a lack of spare car parts, exceeding 70% of the market size due to the decline in the amount imported and the restrictions on spare parts at customs for violating the new prices. Desouky Saied, head of the spare car parts division in the Cairo Chamber of Commerce, said that the continuous price increase has prevented importers from buying goods due to the decline in the consumers' purchasing power. In addition, most of the goods in the market are currently found in companies' storage, and are not new goods. Saied explained that the deficit includes all types of spare parts and those for European, American, Chinese, Korean and Japanese models. The deficit is especially clear among Chinese, Korean, and European spare parts, particularly as these models are those most popular with car owners. Member of the spare car parts division in the Cairo Chamber of Commerce, Mohamed El-Battah, said that there is a clear deficit in the availability of spare car parts due to the high price of the US dollar, and the new prices imposed by customs on importing companies. Thus, those parts violating the new customs policies have not been released. He added that the new prices are considered uncertified because they violate the real price of the spare car parts, where these prices are higher than the original ones by 20-30%. El-Battah said that customs must communicate with producer companies in all countries in order to determine the global prices used and applied, and avoid the randomness of customs rules and the irregular price increases. He explained that customs are still using old prices that were originally used when prices were higher and exceeded the current prices. He noted that the most difficult-to-find parts in the market are shock absorbers, mirrors, brake linings, gasoline pumps, fuses, head and rear lights. Daily News Egypt has obtained a copy of the list of the trial prices in US dollars. The list revealed that diesel engines of Mercedes, Volvo, and BMW models have jumped in price to $650 for four-cylinder engines, $700 for five-cylinder, and $750 for six-cylinder. The price of four-cylinder engines of Japanese cars has reached $550 and $500 for Peugeot, whereas it reached $450 for Fiat and its equivalents. Four cylinder engines of model 102 for Mercedes cars and their equivalent have reached the price of $950, whereas the 104 model engines of six cylinders reached $2,000. Peugeot model 505 of four-cylinder engines reached $450, 504 reached $425, 304 and 305 reached $350, 104, 2014 and 205 reached $300. As for Fiat cars and their equivalent, four-cylinder engines of model 123 Argentina has reached $350; model 131 Regata, Bolognese, and Alfa Romeo reached $325; whereas the models of 124, 125, and 1300 reached $300. The most prevalent car in the Egyptian market, model 128, 127, and Ritmo, of four-cylinder engines, reached the price of $275, exceeding model 133 by $25, which is $250. The price of Volkswagen Jetta and Golf four-cylinder engines amount to $400, whereas the Fiat Tipo and Tempra engines reached $375, and Lada's engines reached $325. Volkswagen water-cooled four-cylinder engines reached $300, while air-cooled engines reached $275. Engine part prices for Volvo, Mercedes, and BMW reached for $10 for the crank, $50 for the carburetor, and $10 for the exhaust furnace. The prices of rear parts for the same car brands reached $8, whereas Jetta and Golf reached $6, and $5 for Peugeot. The front parts of Mercedes, Volvo, and BMW for the recent models reached $1,600, and other models reached $100. Peugeot Golf and Jetta reached $700, while passenger cars reached $600, and $500 for Fiat 132 and Argentina. The prices of the rear parts for Mercedes, Volvo, BMW recent models reached $1400; $600 for Peugeot, Golf, and Jetta; $500 for Japanese cars; $400 for Fiat 132 and Argentina; $350 for Fiat 131 and Regata; and $300 for Fiat 128, Lada, Bolognese, and their equivalents.
