Thai auto sales shrink in first half, but EV market expands
Thailand’s automotive market contracted 5% year on year in the first six months of this year, with total vehicle sales reaching 406,131, the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) said on Thursday.
Toyota topped the chart with 136,859 vehicles sold from January to June, dropping 3.6% from the year-ago period. Isuzu was second in terms of vehicles sold, 86,281, but its sales plunged 21.5% year on year. Honda sold 46,134 vehicles, up 14.9% from the first six months of last year.
The FTI’s Automotive Industry Club said that all manufacturers of one-tonne pickup trucks (Toyota, Isuzu, Nissan, and Mitsubishi) saw sales fall in the first half of the year due to declining demand.
It said one electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer made it into the top 10 in terms of sales: Great Wall Motor, which was 10th with sales of 6,222 vehicles in the six month period, up 19% year on year.
Narong Sritalayon, managing director of Great Wall Motor Thailand, said the sales increase reflects growing confidence in Chinese EVs.
Popular models among Thai customers are Ora Good Cat (2,600 units sold), Haval H6 (2,051 units sold), and Haval Jolion (1,571 units sold), he said.
Narong added that Great Wall Motor plans to introduce nine more EV models over the next three years.
Meanwhile, Rever Automotive Ltd, the importer of BYD EVs from China, said BYD had the most registered EVs in Thailand in the first half of the year.
With 11,168 units being registered, BYD EVs are leading the market. Neta V, another Chinese manufacturer, was second with 5,955 units registered this year.
BYD is building its first manufacturing facility in Thailand at WHA Industrial Estate in Rayong province, aiming to produce 150,000 EVs per year from 2024.
