Thailand LV Sales Remain Stuck in Reverse in March

Light-vehicle sales in Thailand fall 11.7% in March to 74,117 units for a first-quarter result off 11.8% at 197,787.

Toyota Assistant Senior Managing Director Wutthikorn Suriyachantanano says the latest monthly result shows car sales down 13.4% at 30,140 units, with commercial-vehicle deliveries off 10.6% at 43,977, including 1-ton pickups falling 18.1% to 33,409.

Toyota, which collates sales data for the Thai industry, says the market, in the red for the 22^nd straight month, is being held down by low commodity prices and high household debt.

For the first quarter, car sales dropped 12.5% from prior-year to 78,970 units, with the CV market sliding 11.3% to 118,817.

Wutthikorn says the year-to-date results are being impacted by murky economic conditions, difficulty in obtaining loans from financial institutions and caution among businesses and households about investing and spending.

He sees little change in the market despite the government easing monetary policy and accelerating spending on major projects to support the economy.

Market leader Toyota saw March sales fall 10.6% year-on-year to 27,432 units with Isuzu off 20.8% at 12,945 and Honda up 15.3% at 10,505.

The car segment saw Toyota drop 8.3% to 13,387 units, ahead of Honda, down 12.6% at 7,302, and Nissan, off 43.6% at 2,126.

Toyota continued to lead the CV market last month with deliveries down 12.6% at 14,045 units and Isuzu, its nearest rival, tumbling 20.8% to 12,945.

Within the CV segment, the 1-ton pickup market saw Toyota slip 14.9% to 12,959 units with Isuzu off 22.3% at 11,815.

Through the first quarter, Toyota led the market with 70,042 deliveries, down 16.8%, well clear of Isuzu, off 15.8% at 35,905 and Honda, jumping 31.5% to 29,397.

In the car market, Toyota dropped 20.2% to 31,398 units, ahead of Honda, up 12.8% at 21,611.

The CV market saw Toyota slip 13.8% to 38,644 units, with Isuzu down 15.8% at 35,905. Within this, Toyota led 1-ton pickup sales, down 15.7% at 35,761 units, ahead of Isuzu, down 16.8% at 33,027.

Ford deliveries fell 32.1% to 2,486 units in March for a first-quarter total down 31.8% at 6,714. Chevrolet was down 46.2% for the month at 1,507 units for a 3-month total down 42.0% at 4,199.

The Bangkok Post reports, meantime, that the Federation of Thai Industries is set to scale back its 2015 sales forecast after the poor first-quarter performance.

It had predicted in January that production would rise 14.4% this year to 2.15 million units, but FTI automotive industry club spokesman Surapong Paisitpatanapong now says production will likely drop for a third straight year.

FTI is expecting domestic sales to fall about 10% from last year’s 881,832 units, but the group’s new projection will not be officially announced until July.

The slow domestic market will mean overall car production will reach 2.03 million units this year, down slightly from an earlier forecast of 2.15 million.

The good news for the industry is that vehicle exports are expected to jump 10% in 2015 from last year’s 1.12 million. Deliveries to Europe and North America rose 71.8% and 126%, respectively, driven by strong demand for eco-cars.

Overall exports in the first quarter rose 12.6% to 328,232 units, pushing production up 1.4% to 524,540 units.