Auto sales plummet 36 pct in first four months

By Dat Nguyen May 12, 2020 | 07:31 pm PT

Cars seen in a dealership in Thu Duc District, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo by VnExpress/Thanh Nhan.

Auto sales fell 36 percent year-on-year in the first four months to 64,100 units as the Covid-19 pandemic crushed demand.

Between January and April, passenger cars accounted for 72 percent of sales, and commercial and special-purpose vehicles for the rest. Thirty seven percent of vehicles sold were imported.

Truong Hai Auto Corporation (Thaco) retained the top spot though sales fell 34 percent to 20,469 units. It was followed by Toyota, Honda and Mitsubishi, all of whom posted double-digit drops.

In April alone the fall was 44 percent.

Major car manufacturers such as Toyota, Ford and Honda closed their factories and dealerships for two weeks in April in compliance with a government order to combat the pandemic.

Inventories had risen by 122.5 percent in the first quarter.

Last year 322,322 cars were sold, up 11.7 percent year-on-year.