Southeast Asian auto sales up 62% in first eight months

Southeast Asian auto sales up 62% in first eight months

SINGAPORE (AFP): New vehicle sales in Southeast Asia's four
largest markets climbed 62 percent in the first eight months of
this year compared to the same period a year earlier, an industry
survey released Tuesday showed.

The number of new vehicles sold in Indonesia, Malaysia, the
Philippines and Thailand totaled 631,819 in the eight months to
August, up from 389,797 units a year earlier, global auto
component maker Visteon Automotive Systems said in a report.

Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand registered sales
increases of 3.0, 12 and 1.0 percent respectively in August from
July. Sales in Malaysia however dipped 2.2 percent from the
previous month.

"Current economic indicators are not as strong as they were in
the beginning of the year, and some experts believe that ASEAN is
facing another crisis that could cause consumers to hesitate when
spending," said Visteon marketing manager for Southeast Asia
Tetsuya Kamogawa.

"But new models being launched by various auto makers should
help stimulate new vehicle sales and help in achieving initial
sales targets."

Malaysia was the biggest market with 225,293 vehicles sold
from January to August, followed by Indonesia with 184,258,
Thailand with 165,254 and the Philippines with 57,014.

Japan's Toyota Motors Corp. remained the leader with a 20-
percent share of the market, followed by Proton of Malaysia and
Mitsubishi.