Late Marketing Push Ends Malaysian Slump in March
Executive Summary
Malaysian Automotive Assn. data shows March sales were 26.5% ahead of the February result and helped push the year-to-date total into positive territory – up 7.3% at 140,839 units.
A marketing drive at the end of the financial year helps lift Malaysia’s new-vehicle sales out of a slump with the March result up 10.1% at 53,717 units.
Malaysian Automotive Assn. data shows the result helped push the year-to-date total into positive territory – up 7.3% at 140,839 units.
Sales last month were up a strong 26.5% from February, when 42,455 units left showrooms.
The association credits the strong March result to a rush by automakers to meet their annual sales targets for the financial year that ended March 31.
New-car sales in March rose 12.2% to 48,355 units for a 3-month total ahead 8.9% at 127,530. The light-commercial-vehicle segment fell 5.9% in March to 5,362 units for a first-quarter result down 5.1% at 13,309.
Malaysian vehicle production edged up 3.2% in March to 49,356 units, for a first-quarter result ahead 6.5% at 138,015.
New-car builds eased 1.5% to 45,124 units for the month but remained up 5.2% year-to-date at 128,283.
The LCV build soared 110.8% to 4,232 units for a first-quarter total up 27.9% at 9,732.
Meantime, Mitsubishi Malaysia says it’s aiming for a 15% market share in the CV segment with the launch of its updated Triton pickup.
CEO Tomoyuki Shinnishi says the company aims to sell between 6,000 and 7,000 units of the new Triton annually. “That would be a 10% increase compared to last year,” he tells the government’s Bernama news agency.
Shinnishi says Mitsubishi sold 5,500 units of the previous Triton model last year for a 13% market share.
Bernama also reports Google’s Auto Day briefing at its Kuala Lumpur office shows the Internet has changed the way Malaysians buy cars.
The presentation to auto-industry officials finds 75% of Malaysians are online and spend 6.3 hours a day connected to the Web.
As a result, Google says, 86% of car buyers research online before making a purchase; 74% are influenced by the ads they see; and 60% of Malaysian car shoppers have a brand in mind when they search online.
Because of this, Google says car shoppers this year are expected to visit just 2.5 dealerships on average before deciding. This is down from 3.5 visits in 2013 before making a purchase.
Google says three out of four buyers already have made up their mind when they step into a dealership.
