Toyota Vios held the top spot in sales in the whole market in March. — Photo Toyota Motor Vietnam

HÀ NỘI — Members of Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (VAMA) suffered a dramatic drop in sales of the first quarter of this year.

The firms sold just more than 50,000 cars in the period, marking a year-on-year decrease of 33 per cent.

According to VAMA, sales of passenger cars and commercial vehicles fell by 35 per cent and 26 per cent respectively compared with the same period last year.

Of which, the volume of locally-assembled cars decreased by 28 per cent in the first quarter while imported cars dropped by 39 per cent year-on-year.

VAMA statistics also showed that automotive brands are facing very poor business conditions amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, many automakers including Toyota Motor Vietnam (TMV), Ford, Honda, Nissan and TC Motor have suspended production and closed showrooms.

In March, TMV’s sales were 5,510 units, excluding the Lexus car, marking a drop of 44 per cent year-on-year but still held the leading position in the market.

The sales of Ford, Mazda and Honda decreased by 48 per cent, 49 per cent and 39 per cent, respectively.

To help automakers overcome their difficulties, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) recently asked the Government to cut registration fees in half for domestically-assembled cars from this month until the end of this year.

The proposal was submitted to the Government after VAMA reported to the MoIT on automakers' struggles.

According to the MoIT, many businesses in tourism, services, entertainment and transportation have had to minimise or suspend operations, so the number of customers has dropped sharply, affecting sales.

VAMA forecasts that the automobile market in 2020 may decline by more than 15 per cent year-on-year.

For other taxes, MoIT asked the Government to revise regulations on special consumption tax on domestically-manufactured and -assembled cars, helping the domestic automobile industry cut prices and maintain production.

VAMA last month also proposed the MoIT and the Government consider reducing 50 per cent of value-added tax (VAT). It recommended extending the payment of VAT and special consumption tax from March to September 2020. — VNS