KIEV, April 13 – Sales of new passenger cars in 2009 could fall to 120,000-140,000, less than one-fourth their 2008 level, according to Bogdan Corporation President Oleh Svynarchuk.

"If at the end of last year passenger car market players foresaw a 50% fall at most this year compared to the previous one [to 320,000-400,000], after the results of sales in February 2009 they forecasted a fall to 250,000-270,000 cars, and taking into account the results of Q1, one can forecast that only 120,000-140,000 cars would be sold, and at best –160,000 cars," he said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

Analyzing the results of the corporation's car sales in January to March 2009 [a fall in sales more than 3.3 times compared to Q1 2008], Svynarchuk said that Q2 would not be better.