Major Carmakers Ban Sales In Russia

Russia's invasion of Ukraine is having far-reaching effects on multiple industries. Large corporations and countries as a whole continue to impose sanctions on Russia and the automotive and motorsport industries have started to respond. Already, the start of the Formula One season has been affected; yesterday, the FIA announced that theRussian Grand Prix in Sochi had been canceled. Individual carmakers are now making their stance clear and electing to suspend shipments to Russia amid the ongoing war. The group includes Volvo Cars, General Motors, Volkswagen, and German truck maker Daimler Truck.

"Volvo Cars will not deliver any cars to the Russian market until further notice," said the company in a statement. Volvo exports vehicles to Russia from plants in the US, China, and Sweden, but the Swedish company only sold around 9,000 cars in Russia last year.

Volvo'sXC90andXC60SUVs are among its top sellers in the region. The company cited "potential risks associated with trading material with Russia, including the sanctions imposed by the EU and the US."

Joining Volvo is Volkswagen, which has temporarily halted deliveries to local dealerships for models already in Russia. Daimler Truck has a relationship with Russian truck maker Kamaz, but it still decided to freeze business activities in Russia with immediate effect.

The list doesn't end there, even for automakers with a small presence in Russia. A tweet by Nexta TV on February 25 suggests that BMW, Audi, Land Rover, General Motors, and Citroen have also suspended shipments to Russia.