Iran's Competition Council, the body responsible for setting auto prices, had approved a price hike for 23 car models, but none of the Iranian carmakers has increased the prices of their products.
The Competition Council announced the ratification a week ago. Despite this, Iran's first and second biggest carmakers, Iran Khodro Company and SAIPA respectively, have not changed their prices.
One of the carmakers, that has not been named in the report published by Eghtesad News, has filed a complaint, claiming that the quality of cars it produces is higher than what the Iranian National Standards Organization reported.
Some experts believe that a rise in car prices at this point will dissuade customers, who had signed up for purchasing new cars, from paying more and they will most likely withdraw their deposits.
Alireza Pour-Hassani, an automotive expert, said auto manufacturing firms have not yet announced any hike in car prices, while IKCO and SAIPA are still registering new orders at the previous prices.
Pour-Hassani believes that carmakers have acted wisely in this case, for they know well that given the current stagnancy of Iran's car market and the interest of Chinese carmakers in dominating the market of low-end vehicles, a hike in prices would only discourage customers from purchasing domestic cars.
