After a near-collapse in June and a mild recovery in July, August’s figures show a market lagging behind 2020’s monthly figures, in statistics released by the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA).
Minor Increases for Reduced Market
In a very minor increase from July’s sales, August has proved to be a weak month for sales, at least in comparison to 2020. With 2,436 units registered against, 2020’s 5,240, the market is seeing the effect of the different Movement Control Orders (MCOs) that were a consequence of Covid-19. In more positive figures, however, 2021’s year-to-date sales of 29,906 are a clear improvement on the sales this time last year, which amounted to 26,538.
Production has almost tripled from the month before with 1,064 commercial vehicles produced. However, this pales to August 2020’s 2,283 commercial vehicles. In an upturn for the industry though, the near 19,000 vehicles produced this year is a clear 5,000 up from last year’s near 14,000 figure.
The MAA attribute part of the increase in figures to the reopening of showrooms in regions including Selangor and WP Kuala Lumpur, which started on the 13th August. They also see businesses being able to operate at a certain level of business, with car companies working overtime to boost sales and increase revenue. The MAA, however, note that the worldwide shortage of chips will clearly affect production and therefore sales going forward.
