Turkmenistan became the leading buyer of Ukrainian freight cars in the first quarter of 2016, according to data from the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ukraine, RZhD-Partner reports.
Turkmenistan accounted for about half of the total number of railcars (75 out of the total 170) that Ukrainian producers exported during the first quarter. Russia, which was previously the leading buyer, reduced imports of Ukrainian railcars from 577 in the first quarter of 2015 to 42.
As reported, Russia reduced purchases of Ukrainian freight cars from 3,600 to 1,800 in 2015. At the same time, total exports of Ukrainian railcars fell by 60% from 5,000 to 2,000.
In the first quarter of 2016, the total volume of export of Ukrainian freight cars fell from 600 to 170. However, against the backdrop of a significant fall in volumes, new markets – Lithuania (to which more than 30 railcars were exported during the quarter) and Azerbaijan (10 units) – have emerged.
