Latest news with #Perodua
New Straits Times
a day ago
- Automotive
- New Straits Times
RHB: Inflation to weigh on Malaysia auto sales in 2H25
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's automotive sector is expected to face softer sales momentum in the second half of 2025 due to looming inflationary pressures on consumers, according to RHB Research. The firm said the decline will also be driven by incumbent non-national marques, which continue to face intensifying competition as a result of new entrants, primarily Chinese carmakers. "The influx of new models coupled with aggressive price discounting has created a highly competitive environment. "Some buyers may delay their purchases in anticipation of further price cuts from both existing and new non-national marques, thereby destabilising the non-national segment," it added. RHB Research kept its total industry volume (TIV) forecast at 730,000 units, representing an 11 per cent decline on a yearly basis. The firm noted that after three consecutive record-breaking years, the market is showing signs of normalisation amid weakening order backlogs, tighter loan approvals and intensifying price competition, particularly in the non-national segment. As of June 2025, TIV stood at 373,636 units, accounting for 51 per cent of RHB Research's full-year projection. Carmakers such as Perodua and Toyota have seen a decline in order backlogs to 90,000 and 15,000 units, respectively, compared to 100,000 and 20,000 units a year ago. Loan approval rates for vehicle purchases have also dipped to 55 per cent year-to-date, down from 58–63 per cent in the 2022–2024 period, pointing to tighter credit conditions. These factors, combined with looming inflationary pressure, suggest further moderation in consumer demand. In the electric vehicle (EV) space, RHB Research expects growth to persist but remain modest due to high prices and limited charging infrastructure. The firm said the current tax exemptions for completely built-up (CBU) EVs, which have supported early adoption, are unlikely to be extended beyond end-2025, as the government shifts its focus to incentivising locally assembled EVs. "An extension of the tax holiday for CBU EVs would be counterproductive for incentivising original equipment manufacturers to establish local production facilities. "While we expect EV numbers to continue picking up in the coming months, growth in market share is likely to remain moderate due to structural headwinds, such as high pricing and limited availability of charging infrastructure. "As such, EVs are unlikely to influence overall TIV in the near term," RHB Research said. The firm added that another overhang is the impending implementation of the revised open market value (OMV) excise duty in January 2026. The firm said that though recently deferred again, it could lead to a 10–30 per cent price hike for CKD vehicles unless mitigated by the authorities. The Finance Ministry has signalled that such a steep hike is unlikely but has yet to finalise the new pricing methodology. "The new OMV takes into account the engineering work, royalty payments and license fees, amongst others. "For CBU vehicles, prices are based on the cost, insurance and freight, on which import and excise duties are imposed," it added. RHB Research maintained its "neutral" stance on the auto and autoparts sector.
Focus Malaysia
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Focus Malaysia
Affordable cars dominate market as consumers downtrade amid economic pressures
TOTAL industry volume (TIV) plunged 19% month-on-month (MoM) largely due to scheduled plant maintenance shutdowns during the Hari Raya Aidiladha holidays. Meanwhile, TIV declined 6% year-on-year (YoY) mainly due to the shifting of new models launches toward the second half (2H) for this year by Perodua and other Japanese marques. 'Looking ahead, we believe July 2025 TIV will be much higher than June 2025 TIV with full production month and attractive mid-year sales bonanza,' said Kenanga. National marques stood their ground, reaping market share from the non-nationals marques, especially Perodua, backed by strong sustained demand in the affordable segment, attractive new launches, and a downtrading trend by mid-market buyers. Within the non-nationals marques, Mazda suffered the most due to slower new launches and being affected by intense competition from Chinese marques. We have the passenger vehicle segment in June 2025 at 49,804 units. A two-speed automotive market locally will persist stretching to end-2025 and flowing into calendar year 2026 (CY26). It will be business as usual for the affordable segment as its target customers, that is, the B40 and lower tier M40 groups, will be spared the impact of the impending RON95 subsidy rationalization and could also potentially benefit from the introduction of the progressive wage model. Government is still finalizing the mechanism to use for the RON95 subsidy rationalisation and expects that 90% of the Malaysian will not be affected. The upper-tier M40 and T15 groups may hold back from buying new cars, down-trade to smaller cars or switch to hybrids and EVs to cut their fuel bills upon the introduction of fuel subsidy rationalisation. Concurrently, household bills will also be affected by the higher fuel bills, as well as expected 14% increase in base tariff for the higher-end usage which could also drive consumers to switch to solar-panels, in-turn boosting the demand for EV to funnel the excess grid electricity. Additionally, EV routine maintenance costs are considerably lower than ICE's due to fewer moving parts and wear & tear parts. Vehicle sales will also be supported by new BEVs that enjoy SST exemption and other EV facilities incentives up until CY25 for CBUs and CY27 for CKDs. The new registration for BEVs leapt from 274 units in CY21 to over 3,400 units in CY22, 13,301 units in CY23, and 21,789 units in CY24 (based on the Ministry of Transport's press release), or 3% of TIV. We expect more favourable incentives from the government which has set a national target for EVs and hybrid vehicles of 20% of TIV by CY30 and 38% by CY40. Meanwhile, the government will speed up the approval for charging stations. The number of proposed charging stations is currently at 4,477 (4,161 built to date) and this should more than double to 10,000 by end-CY25. —July 22, 2025 Main image: ptc
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Malaysia vehicle market falls 6% in June
Malaysia's new vehicle market declined by almost 6% to 54,832 units in June 2025, from 58,142 units a year earlier, according to registration data released by the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA). GDP growth in the country slowed to 4.4% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025, from a downwardly revised 4.9% in the fourth quarter of 2024, reflecting slowing export growth and slightly weaker domestic consumption growth. Second-quarter growth is also expected to be weak. Malaysia's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 2.75% at July 2025, the first cut since its last hike in May 2023, as it looks to stimulate domestic growth. In the first six months of 2025, the market declined by 5% to 372,636 units from a record high of 391,451 units in the same period last year, with light passenger vehicle sales falling by 3% to 347,084 units while commercial vehicle sales plunged by 21% to 26,552 units. Separate industry data showed that sales of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) increased by 61% to 17,143 units year-to-date, driven mainly by China's BYD Auto and its Denza brand with a combined 6,015 units, and the recently-launched Proton with 4,000 sales, while Tesla sold 2,400 units. Total vehicle production in the country fell by 10% to 392,264 units in the first half of the year. Market leader Perodua reported a 2% sales decline to 166,188 units year-to-date, slightly outperforming the overall market, with the Bezza and Axia being the country's two most popular models with 46,175 and 40,650 sales respectively. Proton's global sales fell by 2% to 72,156 units in the first six months of 2025, including 2,250 exports. The Saga was by far its best-selling model with 31,720 sales, followed by the Geely-based X50 compact SUV with 11,350 units, and the Geely-based S70 sedan with 9,345 units. UMW Toyota reported a 6% decline in first-half sales to 44,286 units, with the Vios its best-selling model with 13,390 sales, followed by the Hilux pickup truck with 11,320 units. "Malaysia vehicle market falls 6% in June" was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
Sinar Daily
06-07-2025
- Automotive
- Sinar Daily
Analysts see EV to continue to gain momentum in Malaysia
The EV segment remains a bright spot, up 58.5 per cent year-on-year for the year-to-date (January to May) and 69.3 per cent year-on-year in May, with 4,152 units registered. 06 Jul 2025 04:03pm Local brand Proton is on track to begin local assembly of the 7 at its new Tanjung Malim EV plant by year-end, while Perodua is preparing to launch its first EV (a B-segment hatchback) in the fourth quarter of 2025. Photo for illustrative purposes only - Canva KUALA LUMPUR - Despite softening car sales in Malaysia, analysts foresee electric vehicles (EVs) continuing to gain traction in the country, reported Xinhua. MIDF Research said in a report on Wednesday that electrification continues to gain momentum in Malaysia. Although overall total industry volume (TIV) is softening, government data as of May showed that the EV segment remains a bright spot, up 58.5 per cent year-on-year for the year-to-date (January to May) and 69.3 per cent year-on-year in May, with 4,152 units registered. It noted that local brand Proton is on track to begin local assembly of the 7 at its new Tanjung Malim EV plant by year-end, while Perodua is preparing to launch its first EV (a B-segment hatchback) in the fourth quarter of 2025. It also noted that EV charging infrastructure is expanding, with over 4,000 chargers now installed, though still short of the 10,000-unit year-end target. EV charging infrastructure is expanding, with over 4,000 chargers now installed, though still short of the 10,000-unit year-end target. Photo for illustrative purposes only - Canva TA Securities also said in its recent report that the EV momentum is expected to continue, with more models set to arrive in the second half of 2025 and into 2026, offering consumers greater accessibility and choice. Currently, consumers have access to more than 40 EV models, reflecting a rapidly expanding portfolio. TA Securities said that Chinese automakers such as BYD, Chery, Xpeng, and Geely continue to expand their footprint by offering feature-rich models at competitive prices. At the same time, premium brands like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche are stepping up efforts to introduce their electric lineups, aiming to capture early ground in the luxury EV segment. Overall, the research house sees that the second-half automotive sales may see a temporary boost, particularly in EVs, as consumers look to secure current tax exemptions before they expire at the end of December 2025. This pull-forward demand could benefit brands with competitive EV offerings. However, it concurred that uncertainties surrounding the potential introduction of EV road tax may lead some buyers to hold off. It opined that the removal of the RM100,000 (US$23,767) price floor for imported EVs, which is also set to end in December 2025, is expected to attract more low-cost foreign models, intensifying price competition and squeezing margins. "While a short-term uplift is possible, the broader outlook remains cautious due to policy risks, affordability concerns, and heightened market competition," said the research house. Maybank Investment Bank also said in its recent report that EV-related investments began gaining traction in the first half of 2025 in Malaysia as the current exemptions on import and excise duties for completely knocked down (CBU) EVs, as well as restrictions on importing CBU EVs priced below RM100,000, are set to expire at end-2025. The research house opined that this momentum is expected to continue into the second half. - BERNAMA-XINHUA More Like This
The Star
03-07-2025
- Business
- The Star
Malaysia succeeds in attracting RM8.13bil potential investments from Italy
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. ROME: Potential investments worth RM8.13 billion have been achieved through the Malaysia-Italy economic cooperation roundtable meeting and meetings with companies here, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. The roundtable meeting involved the participation of 41 Italian companies and agencies, comprising 23 companies from the manufacturing sector, nine companies from the service sector, two companies from the trade sector as well as five government agencies and two industrial organisations. "The potential investments achieved through these two meetings are worth RM8.13 billion in the petrochemical, machinery and equipment, electrical and electronics, and oil and gas services and equipment sectors,' he said at a press conference at the end of his visit to Rome, Italy. Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister, said the potential exports generated were worth RM425 million for oleochemical products, renewable energy, biofuel feedstocks, animal feed additives and food. The roundtable meeting allowed potential companies in Italy an opportunity to express their desire to collaborate with Malaysian companies in various sectors such as high-tech manufacturing, renewable energy, digital economy and sustainable infrastructure. Meanwhile, Anwar said that in a bilateral meeting with his counterpart Giorgia Meloni, Rome and Putrajaya would increase cooperation in the energy, solar, geothermal and hydrogen sectors. Among the collaborations are the Petronas and Eni SpA joint venture in Pengerang, Johor in the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) sector; Perodua and Magna Styer for electric vehicle batteries; and collaboration and investment in the modernisation of the electricity grid, including the ASEAN Power Grid (APG). In the discussion, the Prime Minister said he also applied for recognition of the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification from Italy, in addition to requesting support for a fairer assessment of the European Union Deforestation-Free Products Regulation (EUDR) Implementation. Malaysia aims to be in the low-risk category in the EUDR benchmark system when the rating is reviewed by 2026. Meanwhile, Malaysia has also sought Italy's support in concluding negotiations on the Malaysia-European Union Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The Prime Minister arrived here on Tuesday for a three-day working visit to Italy, the third largest economy in the EU. The visit was at the invitation of Meloni. Throughout the visit, Anwar was accompanied by Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, Transport Minister Anthony Loke, Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin and Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz. Also joining the delegation was Deputy Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir. In 2024, total trade between Malaysia and Italy recorded an increase of two per cent to US$3.18 billion (RM14.61 billion) compared to the same period in 2023. For the period from January to May 2025, total trade between the two countries continued to show positive performance with an increase of 3.3 per cent to US$1.48 billion (RM6.5 billion) compared to the same period in 2024. The Prime Minister departed for France for an official visit on July 3 and 4 after concluding his visit to Italy. - Bernama
