First Quarter 2018 - TIV by Segment

The composition of the Malaysian TIV for 1^st quarter 2018 seems to be slightly different from previous years. The share of Passenger Car (PC) for first 3 months of 2018 is expected (pending official figure by MAA) to be higher by 1 percent compared to 2017 whole year. Up to March, the share for PC segment was around 66.3 percent. Nonetheless, this is much lower than the share in 2014, 2015 and 2016 at 68.6 percent, 68.1 percent and 67.1 percent respectively.

It seems that the share of PC segment continues to be taken by 4x4 segment, which also includes the SUV models. For January to March 2018, the 4x4 segment increased by 2.4 percent from 10.6 percent last year. This, mainly contributed by strong demand for Honda HRV and CRV. In actual fact, 4x4 share this year, at 13 percent is the highest ever in Malaysian automotive market.

Whilst, the MPV segment, which have been steadily growing in the last many years is now starting to decline. For 1^st quarter 2018, the share of MPV segment was only 10 percent compared to 12.9 percent in 2017. Among others, the reason for lower MPV share was attributed to declining popularity of MPV globally. Indonesia, which is among the biggest MPV market in the region also recorded much lower MPV sales over the last few years. Also, there was no new MPV model launched into the market over the last 6 months.

By models, within PC segment, the new Perodua Myvi emerged as the best-seller model with 24,500 units sold from January to March 2018. Perodua Axia was second with 15,000 units and Perodua Bezza at third placing with 10,600 units. The Honda City and Proton Saga at 4^th and 5^th placing with 7,300 and 5,800 units respectively.

Honda controlled the SUV segment with two of its models at the top during the 1^st quarter 2018. Honda HRV has registered 4,300 units and the Honda CRV registered 3,700 units.

Within the MPV segment, 6,000 units of Perodua Alza were registered, followed by Honda BRV with 2,400 units.

In-terms of total volume by model, all the four Perodua models were among the top 5 best-selling models for 1^st quarter 2018. The top 5 models were Myvi, Axia, Bezza, City and Alza.

4x4 segment is going to be an interesting segment to watch moving forward, especially with the growing trend of SUVs. It is no secret that Proton is entering the segment with its “Boyue”. This entrance is expected to break the dominance of Honda in this segment.

For me. "the more the merrier".

March 2018 - What a Hat-trick

Despite an upward trend, Malaysia automotive market continues to be weak and has not recover from the declined in the last quarter of 2017. Typically, March has always been a good month for car sales in Malaysia. So does this year but the improvement was rather small and short of its past years’ performances.

The TIV for March 2018 is expected to be around 50,165 units (pending official announcement by MAA). Improved by 9,587 units from February 2018, but almost 3,500 units lower compared to the same period in 2017. During last 7 years, car sales in Malaysia for the month of March was averaging around 57,000 units. There were at least 2 years when it even went up to more than 60,000 units.

Looking at the prolonged weak market condition, it is now difficult to conclusively attribute the slow trend to just on the loan approval issue that have been haunting the industry for few years now. Perhaps, there is something else. Perhaps it is the sentiment. Perhaps it is the expectation on the forthcoming General Election. But for certain, it is not just about the loan issue.

Year to Date, the 1^st Quarter 2018 is also expected to be lower at around 135,318 units, down by 5,522 units or 3.9 percent compared to 1^st Quarter 2017 at 140,840 units. Most of the major brands in the market recorded a decline in 1^st Quarter 2018 against the same period in 2017.

Based on current market performance, the annualized TIV may not be as per earlier projection of 690,000 units.

Market share for national brands (Perodua and Proton) is expected to be around 50 percent, dropped by 2 percent compared to February 2018. However, On the positive side, the market share for national brands has been lingering above 50 percent for the 1^st three months this year, improved from below 50 percent, which were recorded during the previous 2 years.

On the contrary, Perodua continues to do well for three straight months in 2018. In March, Perodua managed to register 20,738 units, higher by 3,601 units than the month before and by 7.3 percent against March 2017. Though the volume is higher in March, market share for Perodua reduced marginally to 41.3 percent compared to 42.2 percent in February.

Perodua volume was contributed mainly by higher registration on the new Myvi. Perodua carried forward slightly over 30,000 booking of the new Myvi at the end of February. Consistent production has enable Perodua to register almost 9,000 Myvi in March. Demand on other models also remains strong resulting from the sales campaign “Malaysia No 1 Choice” carried through out March.Year to Date, Perodua has registered 55,568 units in 1^st Quarter 2018, a growth of 10.6 percent or 5,303 units compared to the same period last. This continue to position Perodua as the market leader in Malaysia automotive market with 41.1 percent market share from January to March 2018. This is a new record for Perodua.

For me, these hat-trick achievements are the real testaments of strong commitment and dedication among Peroduans to see the continuous success of Perodua. Congrats all and thank you Malaysians for the never ending support to us. In return, we will continue to give our best to serve our customers.

The 28,000 Units New Myvi

Exactly a month ago, we delivered the 18,000^th new Myvi to a lucky Mr. Wong Was Cheng. Today, we delivered the 28,000^th new Myvi to yet another lucky customer. This is exactly 4 months since we launched the 3^rd Generation Myvi.

No excuse, we are struggling to deliver to as many as possible of the 60,000 bookings collected thus far. It is a daunting task but we are committed to give the best to our customers. The production is in full swing with proper variant ratio now  adjusted according to outstanding booking. Currently, 80 percent of the order are for 1.5L with higher percentage is still on the AV variant.

Based on current order bank and the rate we are going; we foresee that the new booking made in March will only be receiving their cars in June 2017. Meaning, for those who wish to drive  the new Myvi for Raya (Puasa), now is the time to make the booking.

The new Myvi is set to be a new phenomenon, just like its predecessor. People often ask why Myvi has been so successful? The answer remains the same, past and now, that Myvi is a model that suit everyone’s requirements. All walks of life. All genders. All Malaysians. The new Myvi alike, is designed to make the older owners; not too young and the younger owners; not too old. The features are admittedly at par with other premium cars, except that they came at a very affordable price.

Delivering 28,000 units in 120 days can be considered a new record too. 10,000 units were delivered over the last 30 days alone.

For the balance of 32,000 bookings in the waiting, we thank you for your kind understanding. Rest assured, we are doing our very best to expedite your cars. For Malaysians, we thank you for your supports.

As of now, the most popular out of 6 colour choices that new Myvi has to offer is the S43 or the Granite Grey with almost 31 percent booking. The second in line is the Lava Red (R69) with 22 percent booking and followed by Glittering Silver (S28) with 19 percent booking. The Granite Grey is exclusively for 1.5L, whilst the others are available for both 1.5L and 1.3L variants. Peppermint Green (G60)is the exclusive colour for 1.3L. 

For me, I am humbly touched with the huge acceptance of our latest amazing baby. To us, You Matter Most. Always.