Automobile sales in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2023 increased by 24.9% from the previous year to 259,139 units, rising for the third consecutive year. In addition to the strong economy, the expansion in demand for rental cars due to an increase in the number of foreign residents including tourists, and support from banks for car loan interest rates appear to have been positive factors. Although the economy has recovered to a level (232,000 units) higher than in 2019 before the coronavirus pandemic, it remains at about 60% of its most recent peak (Read more...

HEV sales in Indonesia increased by 20.1% year-on-year to 40,988 units from January to September 2024, expanding despite the overall market decrease. The HEV market share in Indonesia rose by 2.0 points to 6.5%. Japanese manufacturers, led by Toyota, dominate the HEV market and its expansion is pushing up sales of Japanese OEMs. In Indonesia, tax incentives for HEVs, which had been considered for introduction, appear to have been postponed until at least 2025. Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs stated that the reason for not introducRead more...

Iran's automobile production in 2023 increased by 11.7% year-on-year to 1,188,470 units. In addition, to close the supply-demand gap that cannot be met by domestic production, the government lifted the ban on automobile imports in May 2022 for the first time in three years. Through this measure, the number of passenger vehicles imported between March 20, 2024 and July 21, 2024 was 9,592 units. The government estimates that annual demand is at 1.5 million units per year. The Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade is promoting the shift to EVs (BEV+PHEV) inRead more...

Saudi Arabia’s automobile sales increased by 23.1% year-on-year to 758,791 units in 2023, exceeding 750,000 units for the first time in eight years. The increase in the number of drivers following the lifting of the ban on women obtaining driver’s licenses in 2018, as well as rising demand for commercial vehicles due to the growth of the country’s construction and logistics sectors brought about by rapid urbanization, are factors behind the growth. In 2024, crude oil prices remained at higher levels than the previous year, so the trend of expansion in saRead more...

Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD began to launch the M6, a midsize BEV MPV, in ASEAN countries and India from July 2024 onward. It is based on the gasoline powered Song Max which was sold in China until 2023. In ASEAN and India, it was released for private use as an improved version of the e6, which had been developed for fleet use. The e6 used by taxi companies and other fleet operators, and is sold in Asian countries such as Indonesia, Singapore, and India. In Indonesia, the model is slightly smaller than the Toyota Kijang Innova, and although it is Read more...

HEV sales in Thailand increased by 59.8% year-on-year to 103,784 units from January to September 2024, expanding even as the overall market was shrinking. The HEV market share in Thailand rose by 10.2 points to 19.8%. Japanese manufacturers, led by Toyota, have an overwhelming share of the HEV market and its expansion is providing a tailwind for Japanese manufacturers. In Thailand, a temporary excise tax reduction measure for HEVs is scheduled to be implemented from 2028 to 2032. The Board of Investment of Thailand (BOI) said more than five OEMs are intRead more...

Automobile sales in the Middle East (10 countries) increased by 9.3% from the previous year to 2,818,169 units in 2023. Although sales have risen for three consecutive years, demand is still about 10% lower than the record high of over 3 million units in the mid-2010s.> Iran, the region’s largest market, saw double-digit growth, with sales increasing by 11.7% to 1.18 million units. Iran was followed by Saudi Arabia, up 23.1% to 759,000 units, and the United Arab Emirates, up 24.9% to 259,000 units.> The Saipa group, which accounts for most of automobilRead more...

Automobile sales in 2023 (based on import license data) increased by 8.3% from the previous year to 20,908 units. China’s increased infrastructure investment and the country’s rising number of tourists appear to have supported economic growth in Laos, which in turn drove up automobile demand. Sales of both passenger vehicles and commercial vehicles expanded. Due to increased demand for industrial use such as factory construction, truck sales exceeded 10,000 units for the first time since 2015, increasing market share by 1.7 points to 47.9%. With investmRead more...

Starting in March 2023, the Indonesian government has introduced a subsidy program that provides a flat rate of 7 million IDR per vehicle for the purchase of locally produced electric motorcycles with a domestic production rate of 40% or more. Subsidy payments were made for 11,532 vehicles in 2023, but this figure is expected to reach 60,000 vehicles in 2024, exceeding the 50,000-unit goal set for 2024. Indonesia aims to produce 600,000 BEVs by 2030. The increase in demand for electric vehicles is attributed to several factors: the eligibility for benefiRead more...

Kazakhstan’s light vehicle sales increased by 35.5% from the previous year to 163,290 units in 2023, recovering to the 2013 level (166,000 units) which was the highest in the last 20 years. Automobile production in 2023 rose by 30.4% year-on-year to 147,687 units, setting a record high for the fifth consecutive year. In recent years, there has been an increase in the construction of assembly plants by foreign companies as well as Kazakh-foreign joint ventures, further expanding the country’s vehicle production scale. In 2022, local automaker Astana MotoRead more...

The presence of Japanese automakers in the ASEAN market has been on the decline since 2022. The sales of Japanese OEMs in ASEAN countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam) from January to August 2024 decreased by 5.7% from the same period last year to 1.697,987 units, exceeding the overall market decline of 3.6%. As a result, Japanese market share fell by 1.8 points to 79.2%, dropping below 80%. On the other hand, the market share of Chinese manufacturers such as BYD, MG, and Chery, which had introduced BEVs in Thailand andRead more...

China’s automobile exports have been on the rise, becoming the world’s largest automobile exporter in 2023 when it overtook Japan. Automobile exports in the first half of 2024 increased by 26.1% from the same period last year to 2,925,282 units, while full-year exports are expected to reach 6 million units. In most markets, other than North America and Russia, competition between Japanese and Chinese vehicles is intensifying. According to data released by the China’s customs agency China Customs and Japan’s automotive manufacturing association JAMA, JaRead more...

Uzbekistan’s automobile production in 2023 increased by 25.0% from the previous year to 425,876 units, exceeding 400,000 units for the first time and setting a record high for the second consecutive year. Passenger vehicles, which accounted for most of the production with 421,000 units, an increase of 25.7%, supported the expansion.In Uzbekistan, Chinese manufacturers are accelerating their expansion in the local market. Chery began local assembly of the EXCEED premium brand around May 2023, and FAW Group launched truck assembly in September of the same Read more...

In ASEAN, since the beginning of 2023, manufacturers have been actively working to strengthen their supply chains for power electronics, especially power semiconductors. This is due to the worldwide increase in demand for power control equipment for electric vehicles and the rapid increase in infrastructure that handles large amounts of power, such as data centers and wind power generation. Meanwhile, the governments in the region are also intensifying efforts to introduce measures to attract the semiconductor sector, including power semiconductors, to tRead more...

In Taiwan, there were 7,215 charging plugs as of the end of June 2024, according to AmpGO, a map app for chargers operated by local SaaS operator startup DeN DeN. Looking at the market share by standard, J1772 (Type 1) accounts for 74% of normal chargers. Meanwhile CCS2 and CCS1 account for 44% and 34% of quick chargers respectively. The Ministry of Economic Affairs announced in August 2021 that the government is working on measures to install 7,800 normal chargers and 600 quick chargers by 2025. Although the source is different from the above-mentionedRead more...

BMW’s sales volume in Japan was 21,433 units in the first eight months of 2024, nearly identical compared to the same period last year. In the foreign brand vehicle market, BMW’s sales increased by 1.1 points to 14.7%. Sales of the 5 Series and X2 rose following full-model changes, but sales of the 3 Series and X1 declined. In addition, a low-priced version of the X1 was introduced in May 2024, and the 1 Series and X3 are scheduled to undergo a complete overhaul at the end of 2024, so it is expected that sales will increase. Looking at sales results by Read more...

MINI, owned by German automaker BMW, has begun revamping its product lineup in Japan from the second half of 2023. In November 2023, it launched the Countryman, a fully remodeled Crossover. The 3-Door and 5-Door MINIs, core models of the brand, underwent complete overhaul in March and June 2024 respectively. Due to the full-model change, the name was changed to Cooper. Furthermore, in June 2024, the exclusively BEV model Aceman was released. In parallel with product launches, the company is also updating its sales outlets. The Retail Next Concept, a newRead more...

The Thai government has set a goal of increasing the number of public quick chargers to 12,000 by 2030 to fully popularize BEVs in the country. As of the end of December 2023, the number of public charging stations was 2,658 according to the Electric Vehicle Association of Thailand. So, the total number of charging plugs was 9,694, of which 4,533 were DC quick charging plugs which means there is a long way to go to achieve the government’s target. However, the government does not leave the burden of investing in charging infrastructure solely to the priRead more...

In South Korea, the country’s Ministry of Environment is leading the expansion of the installation of EV chargers and hydrogen filling stations. As of June 20, 2024, there were 350,000 public chargers and 177 hydrogen stations installed. The number of EV chargers per 1,000 people was 6.82, which is a high level even by global standards. The Ministry of Environment has increased the 2024 budget for subsidies for the installation of EV chargers by private companies by 40% from the previous year to 371.5 billion KRW. Of which, 154 billion KRW was allocatedRead more...

Motorcycle sales in Pakistan decreased by 26.9% from the previous year to 1,081,830 units in 2023. The sales decline, which has continued since 2022, is due to demand being suppressed triggered by the overall economic slowdown and import restrictions. However, in 2024, agriculture, blessed with good weather, is driving the economic recovery, and along with that, demand for motorcycles is also recovering. Since March 2024, it has been at a level that exceeds the same month of the previous year. The recovery in unit sales in 2024 is due to the end of inflRead more...

In the ASEAN Big 3 countries, automobile production in the first half of 2024 dropped double digits in Thailand and Indonesia, while increased nearly 10% in Malaysia compared to the same period of the previous year. In Thailand and Indonesia production declined 17.4% and 20.0% to 761,240 units and 561,772 units respectively, while in Malaysia production saw a single digit rise to 388,722 units, up 8.8%. Looking at automobile production in Thailand, there has been a notable trend of companies ending or downsizing their production activities. This is becaRead more...

In Taiwan, production volume in the first half of 2024 increased by 3.7% year-on-year to 144,669 units. Local production of BEVs, based on a platform developed by Foxtron Vehicle Technologies, a joint venture between Hon Hai Precision Industry and Yulon Motor, began in 2024. Yulon Motor began production of BEVs using the abovementioned platform. Production of the Luxgen n7 began in January 2024, making it the first locally produced BEV passenger vehicle. Furthermore, the company plans to start mass production of the 5-seater SUV in the fourth quarter ofRead more...

Chinese automobile brands are gradually increasing their presence in the global market. This report has compiled the market share of Chinese brands, both passenger and commercial vehicles, by country in Europe. Chinese OEMs have a relatively strong presence in Russia (48.2%) and somewhat high market control in the Middle East / Africa region (10.7%). In particular, in Russia, where automakers from Western countries withdrew one after another due to the Ukraine war, Chinese brands entered the market, increasing their market share from 2.1% in 2019 to nearRead more...

South Korea's automobile production in the first six months of 2024 was 2,145,282 units, down 2.4% from the same period last year. Although production slightly dropped compared to the same period of the previous year, it remained at a high level due to an increase in exports. Looking at production by manufacturer, all companies except GM Korea recorded a decline in output. GM Korea produced 268,720 units, an increase of 25.7% compared to the same period last year, driven by the Chevrolet Trax, whose exports surged 94.9% to 166,809 units. On the other haRead more...

This report summarizes the recent trends of Stellantis’ brands (Peugeot / Citroën / DS) that formerly belonged to PSA in the Japanese market. Sales volume reached a record high of 18,855 units in 2021, and the share of the foreign brand car market had risen to 7.3%, but from 2022 onward annual demand dropped to just over 14,000 units, market share dropping to below 6%. Although efforts are being made to prevent products from becoming obsolete by constantly introducing special edition models, the three brands have not been able to come up with definitive Read more...

Automobile production in India during the first half of 2024 increased by 6.2% year-on-year to 3,084,484 units, surpassing 3 million units for the first time, and exceeding a record high for the third consecutive year. The main reason for this expansion is an increase in the production of utility vehicles, mainly compact SUVs, due to their rise in popularity. On the other hand, the rapid increase in demand for utility vehicles was having an impact on sales of passenger cars such as sedans and hatchbacks, so the production of passenger cars continued to dRead more...

Sales of gasoline-powered motorcycles in India reached a record high of 21.64 million units in 2018. However, sales fell to 14.27 million units in 2020 due to financial tightening, the outbreak of COVID-19, and rising vehicle prices due to compliance with exhaust gas regulations. Demand began to recover in 2023, with sales increasing by 1.26 million units (up 8.2%) from the previous year to 16.64 million units. Sales rose in the first six months of 2024 to 9.23 million units, an increase of 1.68 million units (up 22.3%) from the same period last year, fuRead more...

India’s automobile sales in the first half of 2024 (on a wholesale basis, as announced by the Indian automobile industry association SIAM) increased by 5.7% year-on-year to 2,654,087 units, setting a record high for the third consecutive first half. While passenger vehicles continued to perform well, increasing by 7.3% year-on-year to 2,161,507 units, sales of commercial vehicles were sluggish, decreasing by 0.6% to 492,580 units. India’s GDP growth rate for the January-March period of 2024 was at a high level of 7.8%, and the consumer price inflation raRead more...

South Korea's automobile sales in the first six months of 2024 fell 10.6% year-on-year to 801,283 units. The decline is due to worsening consumer sentiment triggered by the recession and high interest rates, as well as by the ending of individual consumption tax break which pushed up demand during the same period of the previous year. Sales of domestic-made vehicles decreased 12.1% to 667,579 units, while imported vehicles dropped 2.0% to 133,704 units. Despite the market shrinking, electric vehicles increased 6.4% to 247,198 units, accounting for more Read more...