January car sales down 25%, says MAA

KUALA LUMPUR: Motor vehicle sales in January fell by 13,833 units or 25 per cent to 40,948 units from 54,781 units in the same month last year, according to Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA).

In an announcement today, MAA said passenger car segment recorded sales of 36,864 units compared to 49,606 units last year, while commercial vehicle sales fell to 4,084 units from 5,175 units.

The tightening of hire purchase loan approval process, short working month due to Chinese New Year holidays and impact of Thailand's flood disaster, which has yet to recover fully, are among the main factors for the decline in sales volume, it said, adding motor vehicle sales in December 2011 totalled 47,954 units.

On the outlook for February, MAA said the market condition is expected to be maintained at January's level.

It said output last month decreased to 51,403 units from 60,283 units in the same month last year.

Passenger car production fell to 46,274 units from 55,217 units in the same month in 2011 while commercial car production rose slightly to 5,129 units from 5,066 units in the same period last year.
 -Bernama