Sales of locally assembled cars including those reported by companies that aren’t members of the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA), dropped by 51% on year-on-year basis amid escalating prices, expensive auto financing and low purchasing power of consumers.
September sales stood at nearly 13,000 units witnessing a 7% month-on-month decline. According to the data compiled by Topline Securities, the latest numbers take the first-quarter sales to 34,472 units, down 50% from a year ago.
Related: Road Isn’t Going to be Easy for Local Assemblers
Another key reason for the sharp decline in sales is the restrictions imposed by the State Bank of Pakistan on the imports of completely knocked-down (CKD) kits, which has hampered the production cycle forcing local assemblers to observe plant shutdowns and non-production days. The move by the central bank is meant to control the outflow of dollars from the economy in view of the continuous draw-down on locally available foreign exchange.
According to the data, all maojr assemblers reported declines in sales on a monthly basis with the sole exception of Pak Suzuki, the sales (6,006 units) of which went up by 52% owing to the low-base effect. Indus Motor Company recorded a 32% monthly decline in sales to 2,617 units while Honda Atlas registered a drop of 29% to 1,280 units over the same period. Sales of Hyundai Nishat also witnessed a 50% monthly dip in sales to 967 units in September.
Source: Dawn
A computer animation professional with over 23 years of industry experience having served in leading organizations, TV channels & production facilities in Pakistan. An avid car enthusiast and petrolhead with an affection to deliver quality content to help shape opinions. Formerly written for PakWheels as well as major publications including Dawn. Founder of CarSpiritPK.com
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