Passenger car sales fall by 10.78% MoM in December 2022

January 11, 2023 (MLN): Sales of passenger cars decreased by 10.78% MoM to 13,768 units in December as compared to 15,432 units in November, the latest data released by the Pakistan Automobile Manufacturers Association (PAMA) showed on Wednesday.

On a year-on-year basis, passenger car sales went down by 43.74% compared to 24,471 units sold in the same period last year.

This decline in car sales attributed to the lower operating days, and limited raw material availability.

Meanwhile, the demand for cars also remained subdued due to new year as customers prefer make purchases after new year holidays.

On the other hand, in 6MFY23, car sales decreased by 39.97% to 68,900 units as compared to 114,774 in the same period last year.

Sales of tractors and three-wheelers & bikes decreased by 18.15% MoM, and 6.49% MoM to 1,015 units, and 103,899 units, respectively.

In December 2022, the 'below 1000 cc' category took a lead as auto sales were recorded at 7,362 units as compared to 7,755 recorded in previous month, Suzuki Alto registered sales of 6,898 units, and Suzuki Bolan sold 464 units in the said month.

The second-highest number of sales was made within the '1300 cc and above' category, clocking in at 4,477 units. Segment wise, Toyota Corolla and Yaris recorded sales at 1,933 units, followed by Suzuki Swift with 1,428 units. Honda Cars (Civic and City) registered sales of 981 units.

The ‘1000cc' category took the third spot as the units sold in December 2022 were 1,929 units, slightly increased by 4.09% MoM. Within this category, Suzuki Cultus recorded the highest sales at 1,057 units, followed by Suzuki WagonR which sold 872 units.

Recently, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has made amendments to the procedure for clearing of LCs for various import items. Instead of SBP, banks will now be clearing Letter of Credit (LCs) for import items according to a priority list issued by the SBP.

The list prioritizes import of essential items which will make the situation difficult for automakers, considered a luxury good which were previously operating on limited quotas for CKD imports, Wasil Zaman, Research Analyst at JS Global noted in a report.

This would pressurize the already diminished demand in the sector on account of higher prices, expensive auto financing rates and measures taken by regulators in the near past, he added.

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