Auto market’s recovery drive

According to the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (Vama), the total sales of Vama members plus non-Vama members’ sales of imported completely-built-vehicles in July hit 7,433 units, up 13 per cent against June. Of which 2,729 units were cars and 4,704 units were trucks.

Especially, cars showed better growth at 21 per cent, while the growth of trucks was 10 per cent.

Previously, the auto industry was hit by month-on-month falling sales such as a drop of 4.6 per cent in June, 2 per cent in May and especially 24 per cent in April.

July’s positive sales are a result of recent better automobile policies and efforts of auto makers, importers and dealers to heat customer’s consuming demand such as promotion, no-profit sales campaign and interest support for buying car via banks.

Michael Behrens, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Vietnam, said: “The market will basically be better by the end of the year. The recent decision on the four-year postponement of personal vehicle fee application is expected to underpin the up-trend in sales, helping relieve car buyers’ stress. This goes hand-in-hand with the first good signs of upward improvement in the Vietnamese economy.”

Behrens hoped that the Vietnam Motorshow in Hanoi in September would kick-start for the auto industry upswing.

To catch up this recovery, Mercedes-Benz Vietnam revealed it would bring an exciting new model and new after-sales products to this show.

Within the first two weeks of August, there were four new domestically-assembled and imported cars to be introduced in the market by Toyota, Honda and Truong Hai Auto  Corporation. Most of new cars are small-sized to closely touch the essential demand of customer in the tough time.

According to Vama, sport utility, multi-purpose and cross-over vehicle were the best selling products with 36 per cent growth in July.

Vama’s chairman Laurent Charpentier forecasted on annual basis gives a full industry at 95,000 units with a second half much better than the first one, a 16 per cent increase versus June’s trend.