Auto

Thailand auto sales and production to stabilise in 2021 – analyst | Automotive Industry News

By Matthew A. Garcia 4 months ago

After signs of a rebound in December, an analyst forecasts that Thailand’s market will bottom out in 2021, even as volumes for the year are still expected to be down on 2020.

Thailand’s new vehicle market rebounded strongly in December 2020, with sales rising by over 7% to 95,636 units from 89,285 units in the same month of the previous year, according to wholesale data compiled by the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI).

While the rebound came against weak year-earlier sales, the vehicle market had become much more stable in the last few months. Day-to-day domestic economic activity in the country had largely returned to normal after the government eased social and business restrictions towards the end of the second quarter as the threat of COVID-19 receded.

The economy was still under significant pressure from weak private consumption and investment, however, while business and consumer confidence remained weak.

The Federation

… Read More

SUVs lifted auto sales in pandemic-ridden 2020

By Matthew A. Garcia 4 months ago
NEW DELHI: The year 2020 was a roller coaster ride for the Indian auto industry. In the first half of the year, the market witnessed a historic low and a temporary halt in production. The second half of 2020 saw a completely different face of the auto industry altogether.
Under Rs 5 lakh market, which is carried forward by a clutch of Maruti Suzuki hatchbacks, Renault Kwid and Hyundai Grand i10 Nios, saw the robust increment as always. The interesting trend was in the SUV market. As the economy reopened, it was the SUV segment leading the front and delivering good sales figures. New faces along with new popular ones from 2020 were chartbusters.

The big hits of 2020
Hyundai and Kia were frontrunners with the highest-ever SUV sales across segments, clocking 1.80 lakh and 1.35 lakh units in the calendar year. The second-gen Hyundai Creta, which was launched in

… Read More

Auto sales skid 41% last year

By Matthew A. Garcia 4 months ago
Louella Desiderio (The Philippine Star) – January 15, 2021 – 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Local vehicle assemblers ended the year with a 40 percent drop in sales as the pandemic affected demand for both passenger cars (PC) and commercial vehicles (CV).

Vehicle importers also registered a 41 percent decline in total sales last year.

Data released by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) showed its combined sales with the Truck Manufacturers Association Inc. (TMA) reached 223,793 units last year, lower than the 369,941 units sold in 2019.

The group’s PC sales slid 36 percent to 69,638 units last year from 109,197 units in 2019.

CV sales declined 40 percent to 154,155 units in 2020 from the 260,744 units sold a year earlier.

In December, total sales of CAMPI and TMA went down 18 percent to 27,596 units last year from 33,715 units in the same month

… Read More

China auto sales declined 6% in 2020

By Matthew A. Garcia 4 months ago

BEIJING — China’s sales of SUVs, minivans and sedans fell for a third year in 2020 as the coronavirus hurt already weak demand in the industry’s top global market, an industry group reported Wednesday.

Sales declined 6% compared with 2019 to 20.2 million, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. Sales of commercial vehicles rose 18.7% to 5.1 million.

In December, sales rose 7.2% over a year earlier to 2.4 million, down from November’s 11.6% growth. Sales of trucks and buses rose 2.4% to 456,000.

Even before the coronavirus hit, demand was hurt by consumer unease about possible job losses due to a slowing economy and Beijing’s tariff war with the United States.

The downturn hurts global manufacturers that are looking to China to drive revenue at a time of flat or declining demand in the United States, Europe and Japan.

It squeezes cash flow for global and Chinese

… Read More