LONDON: Sales of luxury Ferrari and Maserati cars have slumped in the land of their birth as Italy’s financial and economic woes bite even the richest Italians, industry figures have revealed.
Last year, Ferrari saw sales in its home market fall by more than 56 percent, while those at Maserati slumped 72 percent.
Just 248 Italians bought a Ferrari last year.
Italy is in recession, and the government is continuing with austerity measures to trim its deficit.
According to a BBC report, The head of the Italian motor traders’ federation Federauto, Filippo Pavan Bernacchi, blamed “an overdose of taxes aimed at hitting, if not criminalyzing, the acquisition, ownership and use of cars.”
Luca di Montezemolo, Ferrari’s president, was quoted as saying in a media report that the company’s home market had been a blip in an otherwise excellent year.
He said: “Once again the exception is Italy where we have witnessed a drop partly due to the economic crisis, but also to a hostile environment for luxury goods which have long been, and continue to be, an important resource for the country.”
In addition to taxing motoring directly, Italian authorities have also been specifically targeting the owners of Ferraris and other supercars to check that they are paying enough tax.
There have been numerous reports of police officers stopping such cars, and demanding that the driver produces his or her tax registration ID.
Both Ferrari and Maserati are owned by Fiat. Only 115 Maseratis were sold in Italy last year.
Around the world Ferrari is much more successful, however.
During the past decade, annual sales have climbed from about 4,000 to 7,200 in 2011. The 2012 figures have not yet been released.
In September, the carmaker reported record net profits of 100 million euros ($ 128 million) for the first half of the year.
Ferrari delivered 3,664 cars to dealers during the period, with revenues rising 11.9 percent to 1.2 billion euros.
At the time, CEO Amedeo Felisa predicted that 2012 could be another record year for Ferrari.
