"A slight decline in car output was due to the increased number of non-working days at the start of the year, and the end of Oda production at the Izhevsk car plant in favor of [Korea's new] KIA Spectra model," the ministry said, adding that reduced output by other Russian car manufacturers also played a role.
The end of the production of the five-door Oda hatchback in the Volga-region plant to some extent illustrates the Russian automotive industry's competitive struggle against foreign car makers, as producers such as Ford, Renault and Nissan are becoming increasingly popular with buyers.
One of Russia's premier automotive companies, GAZ, announced in December that the last Volga car, a symbol of on-road comfort for many Russians for half a century, would roll out of its plant in two years' time.
At the same time, the ministry said truck manufacturing was up 1% on the 2004 level through investment in production and the modernization of production facilities.
