Romanian Car Maker Dacia Reports 20.5% Rise in Sales

Dacia, a division of French group Renault, on Jan. 14 said its sales rose by 20.5% to more than 300,000 vehicles in 2009.

"This was the fifth straight year when Dacia sales recorded a two-digit growth rate," the group said.

A total of 311,282 cars were sold, 84,708 of them in Germany and 65,956 in France. Exports surged by 56%.

But sales were halved in Romania, to 41,862 units, as the market shrank by 53%.

"In 2010 we expect a stabilization of the local market, with a very tough first semester, followed by a rebound," marketing director Fabrice Cambolive said.

The plant based in Pitesti, 100 kilometers (63 miles) north of Bucharest, was bought in 1998 by Renault.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2010