Taiwan Production (Brand) : 2017-18

This is a commonly used traditional gesture in Taiwan


In Asia, nurturing and protecting local industry is a very high priority. A classic case is the Taiwanese vehicle industry. 250,000 vehicles were made in 2018, with eleven brands represented, although there are seven producers. Still, that's a lot of manufacturers for a relatively small number actually made.

Kouzui Toyota: They are the

India Production (Brand) : 2017-18

Tata Tiago (Parking style not recommended)


Now that total vehicle production has passed 5 million, you would think that import duty would be reduced or eliminated in India, right? Er, no. Which makes me wonder why it exists other than as too often protectionism. Mind you the world - especially Asia - is rife with this very mentality. Lip service is paid to two way trade while the opposite is

Kazakhstan Vehicle Passenger Car Sales : 2018

There have been some boom times here followed by a large crash. The country's car sales are currently coming out of the latter. How were things for 2018? Below are all vehicle sales, including trucks. Green healthy growth, yellow less so and blue decrease.

The ups and downs here are hard to believe. Lada has won back its top spot, lost for two years. Toyota grew well but not enough it seems.

Thai Vehicle Sales : 2018

Total vehicle sales (including commercial) were up 19.7% in 2018 so things are going OK. OK if you make vehicles there, otherwise it is very difficult with import tariffs designed to protect its manufacturing industry. The problem is it doesn't need protecting anymore but in a style that is not uncommon in Asia, it's kept up anyway. That's because bilateral trade isn't the objective.

Singapore Passenger Car Sales : 2018

Sales for 2018 were -13% and -34% in December. However, comparing years and months is somewhat academic. The reason is due to the COE system or certificate of entitlement arrangment. The government only issues so many and they are bid for by those desirous of buying a new car. The amount of certificates available depends mainly on how many cars were scrapped or taken off the road. It's all

Luxembourg / Singapore JLR Comparison : 2010-16

This may seem like an unusual paring, but the similarities are there. Both are small, materially prosperous and have car sales that are close in volume. So what do we learn with a JLR comparison?

The average registrations for the past seven full years has Singapore on 42,000 and Luxembourg 49,000. JLR's penetration is 1.70% and 1.64% respectively. There's nothing in that. However, Singapore

Thai Vehicle Sales - Brand / 2016

When a market is protected by import duties, you either make them there or become a fringe player. A few brands dominate and the rest feed off the crumbs. That is the case with this market. The data below includes commercial vehicles but take them out and few car brands sell in sizable numbers.

The total was down 3.9% and if half it was five years ago. At least the losses are slowing to a

Singapore Car Sales - Brand / 2016

The system employed of issuing certificates for new cars creates unusual patterns of car buying. Ten years ago sales fell precipitously from 117,000 in 2006 to a low of 22,500 in 2013. They are now back on the rise, with 87,500 registrations in 2016. When will the crest of the wave be reached again before another fall? It all depends in how many certificates (COEs) are handed in as older cars

Malaysia Car Sales - Brand / 2016

In 20016 Perodua passed rival Proton to become the most popular brand and it has stayed there since. Then just this year Honda moved into second. Toyota could have also captitalised on Proton's slide but it had an even worse year.

2015 was a record breaker but 2016 could not live up to that and fell 13%. Many makes suffered reduced sales but some still managed to increase. Because it is total

Pakistan Local Sales : 2013/14

29,500 sold in the year just ended


In Pakistan, the sales year goes from July to June, so the figures below are from July 2013 to June 2014. It is also only for cars assembled in the country as well. So Land Rover sales are only for the Defender model, not the others that are imported. However, not many cars are imported due to high tariffs so the data is indicative of what really happens

Car LCV Sales Pakistan: 2011/12

Pakistan car and LCV sales are for July to June 2011/12. The figures below are only vehicles locally assembled, imported models are not reported. Mind you, there wouldn't be many of the latter. The LR figure is only the Defender model. Suzuki manages to take over 60% of the sales, with Toyota just under 30%.

Suzuki 112,157 +40.3%
Toyota 50,620 +15.0%
Honda 12,119 -21.7%
Daihatsu 3,857 -35.8%

Car Sales Malaysia: 2011

Car sales in Malaysia were down slightly in 2011, but 2010 was a record year so 2011 was strong. Local brands Perodua (who make Daihatsu cars under license) and Proton took nearly two thirds of the market, not what it used to be but substantial nonetheless.

Below are sales by brand and increase/decrease:

1 Perodua 179,989 -4.6%
2 Proton 158,601 +1.0%
3 Toyota 63,493 -10.7%
4 Honda 32,480

Vehicle Sales Thailand: 2011

The floods that devastated Thailand dented vehicle sales rather badly, yet the strong sales before that meant that the market proved stable for the total year.

To sell cars in numbers in Thailand, you have to make cars locally to avoid steep import duty. Toyota provide the sales for the country, and they dominate the market. The three top makes were hurt by the floods most it seems. Other

Car Sales Philippines: 2011

The local car market is heavily protected by import duties. For the size of the population, sales are modest, due to low incomes for many. If commercial vehicle sales were taken out, personal car sales would be very low. Some brands such as Land Rover and Jaguar are sold but the importer does not release sales figures. Such secrecy is so last century, and not proactive.1 Toyota 54,600 -4%2

Car Sales India: 2011

This is an increasingly important market in size and potential. A car maker has to assemble cars locally to achieve any penetration due to stiff tariffs. Suzuki had supply problems which show below in the sales slump. The Land Rover and Jaguar sales are estimates, due to Tata steadfastly refusing to elaborate in any way other than to say they are doing fine.

1 Suzuki 685,000 -36%
2 Hyundai

Car Sales Singapore: 2011

Car sales were numerically low in Singapore, due to fewer permits (COE) issued to buy them. Cars have high duty and the cost for the COE is steep, so it makes average cars uneconomic. Those who can afford all this can also buy a better class of car, so the market is being taken over by premium marques. This is obvious from the data below:

10/11/Brand/Sales/Inc-dec

3 1 BMW 4,959 5%
2 2 Mercedes