auto sales drop 30% in first two months

Auto sales in the first two months of the year dropped 30 per cent year on year to 66,446 units, according to data compiled by Tri Petch Isuzu Sales.

This is despite the 7-per-cent month-on-month increase in February sales. In February, the number of units sold reached only 34,361 units.

In the first two months, Mitsubishi, the country's fifth-largest auto company, experienced the sharpest drop in sales, almost 50 per cent down from the same period last year.

The other top four players also suffered severe reverses - Toyota saw its sales drop 28 per cent year on year; Isuzu, 30 per cent; Honda, 19 per cent; and Nissan, 39 per cent.

In the one-tonne pickup market, Isuzu has returned to the No-1 position with sales of 13,811 units, for a 43-per-cent market share.

Meanwhile, Toyota, which has held the top spot in the past few years, sold 11,590 units, for 36 per cent of the market.

Demand for passenger cars also dropped in the period, with sales of only 27,774 units in the first two months, down 13.5 per cent year on year. Toyota maintained its No-1 position in the segment, with sales of 13,627 units, or 49 per cent of the market. Next were Honda, with sales of 10,490 units, or 37.7 per cent; and Nissan, 683 units, or 2.46 per cent.