In the first half of the year, spare parts distributors showed revenue increases in comparison to the same period a year before. Growth was confirmed by as many as 87% of the surveyed companies. The positive dynamics was the result of high demand, high production costs, which caused automatic price increases, as well as the development of sales in foreign markets. The already strong demand for parts was further supported to a small extent by a 14% decline in passenger car sales (measured by registrations) in Europe compared to the first six months of previous year. Fewer new car sales meant that existing used cars had to be serviced and repaired for a longer period of time. In turn, the high cost of producing parts drove prices up on the manufacturers' side, but thanks to strong demand they managed to pass them on to end customers, which not only kept margins high, but also ensured high prices. High volumes and prices must have resulted in dynamic growth - 48% of surveyed distributors reported revenue growth of at least 10% year-on-year.

In the second half of the year, almost 83% of surveyed distributors expect growth, with as many as 44% assuming growth above 10%. Threats to this growth could come from the same factors that can affect spare parts manufacturers - a worsening economy, inflation or customer concerns about the future.

Distributors, like manufacturers, face problems in supplying goods. 70% of spare parts distributors are unprepared to meet ESG information requirements, including 22% who were unaware of the impending obligation. To a large extent, this reflects the specifics of this automotive segment. Certainly, expectations in this area on the part of end customers, and thus also distributors, are lower than for automakers. However, there will have to be changes here too due to regulatory requirements.

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