Thailand’s auto sales volume in May dropped 10 per cent compared to the same period last year as a result of the decline in production capacity of the Japanese automotive industry.

Toyota Motor Thailand Senior Vice President Wuttikorn Suriyachantananon said the sales volume in May reached only 55,851 units for passenger vehicles, the largest drop in the past 21 months.However, the first five months of this year saw 361,753 units sold, which was a new record high.

The rise in the cumulative figure counted as 26 per cent year-on-year. The demand for sedans rose 33 per cent, while vehicles for commercial purposes increased 21 per cent owing in part to the improving domestic economy and more exports that encouraged consumers higher purchasing power.   Mr Wuttikorn said the auto sales volume in June is likely to grow, thanks to Japans ability to produce automobiles and the Thai governments economic measures to boost consumers spending. MCOT online news

via Thai auto sales drop in May due to decline in Japanese manufacturing.

Japan’s automobile production fell 6. 3 percent in January from a year earlier, marking the fourth consecutive month of decline, the Japan Automobile Manufacturing Association (JAMA) said in a report on Monday.

Automobile production in January totaled 706,107 units, down from the 753,734 units total production logged in the same month a year earlier, JAMA said.

January’s decline follows a 5.1 percent fall the previous month and a 6.7 percent contraction logged in November, the industry body said.

Manufacturing of passenger cars fell 7.2 percent to 609,598 units, while truck production dipped 2.1 percent to 87,830 units to mark the second straight month of decrease. The production of buses however, increased 17.2 percent to 8,679 units, marking the fourth straight month of increase, JAMA said.

The association also noted that domestic sales of automobiles in Japan dropped 16.7 percent year-on-year in January to 305,500 units sold.

JAMA highlighted that the domestic sales figures were in stark contrast to figures showing that auto exports increased in the recording period by 7.3 percent in comparison with the same month of the previous year.