Is it time for MENA’s car retail industry to shift online? Data shows visits to showrooms fell by 80 percent in Saudi Arabia during the March-June 2020 pandemic period A study by YallaMotor found 60 percent of car buyers now prefer to buy online rather than from a showroom Updated 29 min 59 sec ago Ahmed Gabr April 02, 2021 22:58 DUBAI: The global pandemic has drastically accelerated digitalization in consumer-facing industries, offering vendors an opportunity to survive the current slump but also pave the way for sustained future growth. Global car sales were expected to shrink by 9.4 percent by the end of 2020. Many factors have contributed to this slide, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent decline in consumer purchasing power, plus weaker economies, a reduced need for transportation, and crashing oil prices.