Financial Tribune - Iran’s automotive output suffered its sharpest year-on-year decline in 2018 since the 21st century.

Local companies last year made 1.34 million cars and commercial vehicles -- a 40% YoY decline, data published on the Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs d’Automobiles website (OICA.net) show.

The sector had a bad year back in 2012 when local car output dropped 39%. However, 2018 was the worst year for the key auto industry in recent memory. Most market observers and analysts worry that 2019 will be worse.

In the past decade, 2003 was the worst year for the sector in terms of production rates when 743,680 vehicles were made.