New vehicle sales in Malaysia fell 10% to 71,052 units in March 2024 from a record high of 78,881 units a year earlier, according to registration data released by the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA).
New vehicle sales in the country were widely expected to soften this year after hitting record volume in the previous two years as the market rebounded from the Covid pandemic and subsequent supply chain disruption.
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Malaysia’s domestic economy remained strong, despite the central bank having hiked its benchmark interest rate from 1.75% to 3.0% in the last two years. Private consumption rose by 4.2% year on year in the fourth quarter of 2023 while the overall economy expanded 3.9%.
In the first three months of 2024, new vehicle sales increased 5% to 202,245 from 192,615 a year earlier, with passenger vehicle sales rising by 8% to 184,994 units while commercial vehicle sales fell by 16% to 17,251.
Total vehicle production was up 6% at 210,431 units.
Proton global sales fell 3% to 39,150 units in the first quarter of 2024. The Saga remained by far the company’s best-selling model with 18,247 deliveries followed by the Geely-based S70 sedan (5,828), the Geely-based X50 compact SUV (5,444) and the Persona sedan (5,370).
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By GlobalDataUMW Toyota Motor reported a 7% decline in combined sales of Toyota and Lexus vehicles to 23,444 units.
The MAA said it expected the market to weaken further in April due to the annual Hari Raya holidays.
Earlier this year, the association forecast total vehicle registrations to fall 7% to 740,000 units in 2024, including 59,200 hybrids and 14,800 battery electric vehicles (BEVs).
Local financial services firm RHB Research was more downbeat last month, forecasting the overall market to decline by 22% to 625,000 units this year, pointing to lower order backlogs at key brands such as Perodua and Toyota.
