In the first quarter of 2009, the market dropped some 50 percent, given that few residential or office projects are being developed. This figure is to be maintained throughout the entire year, companies in the field say.
“There are already bankruptcies among small and medium-sized companies, and some producers have started selling below production costs which, in my view, is suicidal, because one cannot hold onto the market in this way,” the President of the Employers Union of Double Glazed Window Producers (PPTT), Valentin Petrescu, told Business Standard.
He added that a lack of funds could lead some producers to lower costs and make low-quality products.
Producer Veka Romania’s Marketing Manager, Alexandru Oancea, estimates that one third of producers could switch to other services in the same area of activity. Furthermore, he said prices will fall some 20 percent this year, especially for cheaper products. The General Manager of Austroplast Profile producer, Pavel Ivanov, agrees. “We cut prices by 25-40 percent in the first quarter, which led to a 10 percent increase [in sales] as of early April,” he added.
