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Passenger car sales surge over 60pc

Shahid Shah
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2025

KARACHI: Passenger car sales (PAMA members) in the country increased by over 60 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in December 2024. However, sales remained down on a month-on-month basis, data showed on Tuesday.

However, December sales slightly decreased month-on-month against 7,900 units in November 2024.According to data released by the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA), passenger car sales (PAMA member cars) increased by 60 per cent to 7,864 units in December 2024, compared with 4,916 units sold during the same month the previous year.

For the first six months of FY25 (July-December 2024), passenger car sales increased by 51 per cent to 46,398 units against 30,662 units the previous year.

Mashood Ali Khan, an auto expert and former chairperson of the Pakistan Association of Automotive Parts and Accessories Manufacturers (PAAPAM), said the wheeler market has grown amid a decrease in interest rates and an increase in remittances. “We predict that 2025 would be better than 2024 and 2023, but we may not achieve the benchmark of 250,000 vehicles,” he said.

Sales of 1300cc and above cars sales were recorded at 2,977 units, up 67 per cent compared with December 2023 sales of 1,785 units.During this period, 1,000cc cars recorded sales of 542 units, down against 706 units during the same month last year. Below 1,000cc vehicles recorded a sale of 4,345 units, up 79 per cent against 2,425 units in December 2023.

In electric vehicle category, Dewan Motors’ Honri-Ve recorded a sale of 41 units in December, compared with 63 units in November’24. The sale of buses and trucks increased to 193 units in December 2024 from 105 units in December 2023. The sale of jeeps and pick-ups increased to 1,915 units from 900 units sold during the same period in 2023.

Khan said that the trucks and buses segment was still facing challenges, as buses were being imported in the EV segment while they were not going to the local market. The total tractor industry recorded 7,030 units in sales, marking a 170 per cent YoY and 105 per cent MoM increase, primarily driven by the delivery of tractors under the Green Tractor Scheme.

Millat Tractors (MTL) achieved 4,686 units in sales, the highest monthly sales in nearly seven years (since April 2018), reflecting a 123 percent YoY and 231 per cent MoM rise in December 2024. Meanwhile, Al Ghazi Tractors (AGTL) recorded 2,344 units in sales, up 363 per cent YoY and 17 per cent MoM in December 2024.

The sale of rickshaws and motorbikes increased to 118,091 units during December 2024 against 82,362 units in the same period in 2023.According to Myesha Sohail at Topline Securities, the MoM decline is primarily attributed to the end-of-year effect, with buyers postponing deliveries or purchases to obtain new-year registrations.

The YoY rise in car sales is driven by lowered interest rates, improved consumer confidence, and the introduction of newer variants and models.Among non-PAMA members, KIA Lucky Motors saw a 30-40 per cent rise in sales in 2024 as compared to 2023, with volumes expected at 6500-7000 units.

Indus Motor Company (INDU) was the only company to experience an MoM decline of 25 per cent in December 2024, while all other companies saw both MoM and YoY increases in sales.Myesha Sohail said auto sales have seen a recovery in the past few months, and going forward, they expect sales to post strong growth from January 2025 owing to an expected recovery in auto finance amidst falling interest rates.