Motorcycle sales rise 1.6 percent in August

Motorcycle sales rise 1.6 percent in August

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Sales of new motorcycles in this country rose 1.6 percent on month to 270,894 units in August, PT Astra International said on Wednesday.

The company didn't give any reasons for the increase.

Astra, which makes and sells Honda motorcycles with Japan's Honda Motor Co., said it sold 152,305 motorcycles in August, up 0.8 percent from a month earlier.

Its Honda motorcycle sales rose 1.1 percent to 137,837 units in August.

Meanwhile, sales of other motorcycles like Suzuki, Kawasaki, Yamaha, Piaggio, and Kymco reached 118,589 units in August, up from 115,592 units in the previous month.

Cycle & Carriage Ltd. of Singapore holds a 35 percent stake in Astra International, the country's largest automotive maker.

Analysts have said that rising domestic demand is driving car and motorcycle sales in this country.

They said that domestic consumption had been strengthened with declining inflation, lower interest rate and stronger exchange rate of the rupiah against the U.S. dollar.