Vietnam's Commercial Auto Sales at Full Throttle

HANOI, Nov 14 Asia Pulse - Automobile sales saw their eighth consecutive month of growth in October, with 9,081 vehicles sold during the month, a year-on-year leap of 125 per cent, according to industry date released on November 12.

The growth was largely fuelled by stronger sales of commercial vehicles, according to Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association (VAMA) chairman Udo Loersch.

The country's 16 leading automakers sold 4,823 commercial vehicles, including buses, vans and trucks, up 170 per cent year-on-year. Meanwhile, passenger vehicles sales were up 120 per cent, to 1,864 units sold, while sport utility vehicle and multi-purpose vehicle sales grew 71 per cent, to 2,394 units.

All VAMA members, except Mitsubishi's Vietnam affiliate Vinastar, reaped a big sales bonanza last month, with Toyota first in line as usual, selling 2,016 vehicles, an increase of 50 per cent.

Toyota's Innova MPV again remained its best-selling model since the vehicle's debut in early 2006, with 1,320 units sold last month.

The Vietnam Automobile Industry Group (Vinamotor), which specialises in commercial vehicles production and just enrolled in VAMA last month, sold 1,268 units in October, up 363 units over a month earlier.

Truck maker Truong Hai kept its momentum in third place, selling 1,209 units, registering a year-on-year increase of 149 per cent.

A series of cuts to import duties were made over the past few months in a bid to reduce the prices of cars in Vietnam, considered among the highest in the world due to the heavy tax burden.

The latest move, a reduction of the tariff on imported used vehicles of 6-10 per cent, came on November 4, a month following a cut in the import duty on new cars from 70 per cent to 60 per cent.

According to Deputy Minister of Finance Truong Chi Trung, the reductions were intended as a counter-inflationary measure to compel importers to lower retail prices as well as intensify competitive pressures on domestic automakers to follow suit.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said it was proposing that the tariff on imported spare parts and components be reduced from 18 per cent to 15 per cent to help domestic manufacturers reduce prices.

Vietnamese customs statistics shows that the country imported 5,252 cars worth US$280 million in the first eight months of the year, an increase of 62.2 per cent. Used cars accounted for 1,700 units.

(VNA)

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