New vehicle sales in Indonesia declined by 14% to 61,271 units in March 2026, down from 71,099 units a year earlier, according to wholesale data compiled by the local automotive industry association, Gaikindo.
Indonesia’s vehicle market last month was affected by the long annual Eid holidays, which fell in March this year compared with April last year. Consumer sentiment has improved in recent months following multiple interest rate cuts by the central bank over the last eighteen months, to 4.75% from 6.25% in September 2024. GDP growth accelerated to 5.4% in the fourth quarter of 2025, the strongest annualised growth since 2022, driven by strong domestic consumption and investment.
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In the first three months of 2026, the local vehicle market expanded by 2% to 209,021 units from weak year-earlier sales of 205,539 units, driven mainly by strong demand for battery electric vehicles (BEVs). BEV sales more than doubled to over 36,700 units year-to-date, to account for almost 18% of total vehicle sales in the country, with a significant number of new Chinese brands entering the market in the last year. Chery’s Jaecoo sold 8,065 vehicles in the first quarter, most of which were BEVs, compared with none in the same period last year.
Toyota continued to lead the market in the first quarter, with sales declining by 12% to 68,584 units, while Daihatsu sales were down just slightly at 34,881 units after falling sharply last year. Mitsubishi reported a 9% sales increase to 19,096 units, while Suzuki’s sales rose by 20% to 14,174 units after its deliveries more than doubled in February.
BYD’s first-quarter sales more than doubled to 12,473 units, while its Denza brand saw its sales fall by 56% to 1,117 units. Nissan was the worst performer among the mainstream Japanese brands year-to-date, with sales plunging by 71% to just 80 units, followed by Honda with a 39% drop to 13,530 units.
Overall vehicle production in the country was just slightly higher at 290,941 units in the first quarter of the year, following a 15% drop in March due to the extended annual Eid holidays, while exports of fully assembled vehicles rose by 12% to 123,455 units.
GlobalData forecasts that sales of light vehicles in Indonesia will continue to decline in 2026, by almost 4% to 721,000 units from 750,000 units in 2025, before rebounding by 7% to 771,000 units in 2027.
