In a historic milestone, Malaysia’s car market revved past the 800,000-unit mark in 2024, with an impressive total of 816,747 vehicles sold.
This achievement, announced at a press conference by the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA) yesterday, marks a 2.1% increase from 2023’s tally of 799,821 units.
It’s the first time Malaysia has seen its car sales hit this high, and it’s safe to say the automotive sector is in top gear.
What’s Driving the Boom?
The MAA attributed this record-breaking performance to several factors, with the domestic economy’s resilience playing a big part.
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The country’s GDP grew by 5.2% in the first three quarters of 2024, compared to 3.8% during the same period in 2023. A steady Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) of 3%, coupled with low unemployment at 3.2%, also contributed to this surge.
On top of that, the successful launches of new car models and a backlog of orders, particularly for A-segment vehicles, kept the sales momentum going strong.
Passenger Cars Shine, But Commercial Vehicles Take a Hit
The spotlight in 2024 was firmly on passenger cars, which saw a 3.9% increase in sales, rising from 719,145 units in 2023 to 741,180 units.
However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing across the board. Commercial vehicles faced a 13.8% decline, dropping to 69,567 units from 80,676 units the previous year.
The MAA explained this dip was largely due to the removal of the diesel subsidy mid-year, which led to a 16.4% decrease in demand for pick-up trucks.
Electrified Vehicles Are Gaining Traction
Another highlight was the growth in sales of electrified vehicles (xEVs). These accounted for 5.6% of the total vehicle sales in 2024, up from 4.8% in 2023.
The numbers speak for themselves: xEV sales soared by 19%, with 45,562 units sold compared to 38,214 units the previous year. This included 14,766 battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and 30,796 hybrids.
National Automakers Lead the Charge
Leading the pack was Perodua, setting its own record with 358,102 units sold in 2024.
Thanks to such strong performances from national brands, their share of the passenger vehicle market rose to 67.7%, up from 66.9% in 2023. In contrast, non-national brands saw a slight decline, with sales dropping 2.3% to 311,058 units.
A Month to Remember
December 2024 was a standout month, with 81,735 vehicles sold—the highest monthly total ever recorded in Malaysia. This figure shattered the previous record of 78,895 units set in March 2023 and marked the first time the monthly total breached the 80,000-unit barrier.
Looking Ahead to 2025
Despite the stellar performance in 2024, the MAA forecasts a slight dip in 2025, with sales expected to fall by 4.5% to around 780,000 units. The association pointed to factors like marginal economic growth predicted by the IMF, the looming expiration of duties exemptions for imported BEVs, a lack of sufficient EV charging infrastructure, and global uncertainties such as the US-China trade tensions.
It’s clear that while 2024 was a banner year for Malaysia’s automotive industry, the road ahead may have a few speed bumps.
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