Total car sales dropped by a smaller-than-expected 1.1 percent to 33,947 units last month from a month ago, which Yulon Nissan Motor Co (裕隆日產) yesterday attributed to price cuts.
Total car sales last month were 2.2 percent lower compared with a year ago because of a higher comparison base, according to the latest data compiled by the data communication branch of Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信).
Yulon Nissan and Hotai Motor Co (和泰汽車), which distributes Toyota and Lexus models in Taiwan, launched their flagship sedans in October last year.
Yulon Nissan previously estimated sales of 31,000 units last month amid expectations that customers would focus on the nine-in-one elections or be swayed by poor TAIEX performance, vice president Leman Lee (李振成) said by telephone.
However, price cuts drove last month’s sales past Yulon’s forecasts, Lee said.
Yulon Nissan was the second largest car distributor last month, selling 3,801 vehicles, Chunghwa’s data showed. The figure was 16.8 percent higher than the month before and 22.5 percent lower than the previous year, data showed.
Lee said the month-on-month sales increase was because Yulon launched a sales contest last month, that is to continue until the end of the year.
Last month, market leader Hotai acquired a 35.9 percent market share by selling 12,182 vehicles, data showed. The figure was up 5.6 percent than the month before and 3.8 percent higher than the previous year, according to data.
“As for this month, total vehicle sales might decline from last month’s numbers because many distributors have had no problems achieving their sales targets for this year and are likely to reduce their sales promotions,” Luxgen Motor Co Ltd (納智捷) president Hu Kai-chang (胡開昌) said yesterday.
From January through last month, total car sales grew 12.5 percent to 382,030 units, data showed.
Hu said the figure was higher than expected, partly because of strong growth in the premium car segment.
Total premium vehicle sales grew 20.7 percent to 58,337 units this year from the year before, because many premium distributors have sold more entry-level vehicles this year, Hu said.
Luxgen, a subsidiary of Taiwan-based Yulon Motor Co (裕隆汽車), sold 15,586 vehicles over the past 11 months, topping its annual target of 15,000 units, data showed.
The figure was up 1.3 times from the previous year, on the back of strong sales of Luxgen’s U6 SUV, data said.
The company sold 10,000 U6 units in the past 11 months, it said.
Hu said the company is set to sell more than 16,000 vehicles this year.
However, it might be difficult for Luxgen to increase sales early next year because it is not launching a new vehicle in the early part of the year, Hu said.
However, Luxgen is set to launch a sedan on both sides of the Taiwan Strait next year, Hu added.
Eyeing the popularity of its U6, Luxgen yesterday launched a special version of the SUV to cater to female drivers.
The company expects to sell all 300 units of the special version within weeks, it said.
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