KARACHI: Automobile sales hit a 31-month low at 10,867 units in January 2023 amid a partial suspension of small car production due to restricted component imports and a price increase following a significant devaluation of the rupee.
Sales of high-end cars, however, showed a notable growth in January, compared to the previous month, despite all odds.
Sales of automobiles (cars, light commercial vehicles, vans and jeeps) fell to almost half at 10,867 units in January 2023 compared with the same month of last year, research houses reported, citing the data of Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (Pama) on Monday.
Sales dropped 37% in the month under review compared to the previous month of December 2022.
Auto sales decreased overall by 40% to 94,296 units in the first seven months (July-January) of the current fiscal year, down from 156,586 units in the same period the year before.
According to reports, Pak Suzuki Motor Company (PSMC) recorded its lowest sales since April 2020, when it recorded zero sales as a result of the Covid-related shutdown, a decrease of 67% year over year and 74% month over month to 2,946 units.
Indus Motor reported an increase of 26% month-on-month to 3,570 units followed by Honda Atlas Cars at 2,704 units in January 2023.
Hyundai’s sales were up 81% month-on-month where Tuscon’s sales rose by 69% to 620 units and those of Sonata by 241% to 191 units in January 2023, it said.
