In September 2023, Pakistan’s automotive industry faced a sharp 30% year-on-year dip in car sales, with only 6,410 units sold compared to 9,213 units in September 2022. This decline has been attributed to high prices and interest rates.
However, compared to August 2023, there was an 8% increase, mainly due to the removal of import restrictions. For the first quarter of the fiscal year 2023/24, sales plummeted by 44% to 16,021 units from 28,571 units during the same period in the prior year.
Category and Manufacturer-specific Insights
Breaking down the sales further by engine capacity, vehicles with 1,300cc & above experienced a 38% year-on-year reduction. Those with 1,000cc faced a more pronounced decline at 54%, and vehicles below 1,000cc saw a 7% decrease. In terms of commercial vehicles, the sales of buses and trucks declined by 51%, whereas jeeps & pick-ups dipped by 8%. Contrarily, tractors witnessed a staggering 153% increase in sales year-on-year.
Additionally, two-wheeler segments like rickshaws and motorbikes saw a 7.5% year-on-year uptick in sales. Among specific manufacturers, Honda Atlas Car (HCAR) enjoyed a 99% month-on-month growth, while Pak Suzuki (PSMC) observed a slight 1% month-on-month decline. Analyst Sunny Kumar pointed out that the monthly car sales hike could be credited to resolving import issues for CKD kits. In contrast, rising car costs, expensive financing options, and weakened consumer purchasing power influenced the annual decline.
