New vehicle sales in Malaysia plunged by over to 25% to 37,876 units in February, from a revised 49,477 units in the same month of last year, according to registration data released by the Malaysian Automotive Association.
Consumer confidence has weakened significantly in recent months, as economic growth continued to slow, and following a substantial drop in the value of the ringgit against the US dollar and most major currencies in the region.
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Economic growth this year is expected to slow to between 4.0-4.5%, from 5% in 2015 and 6% in 2014, reflecting weakening domestic consumption and sluggish exports.
Vehicle sales in the first two months of the year were down by close to 18% at 82,467 units, from 100,079 units in the same period of last year.
The association expects full-year sales to fall by 2.5% to 650,000 units in 2016, compared with close to 666,000 units in 2015, although this forecast may be on the optimistic side given the rate of decline so far this year.
Passenger car sales amounted to 74,126 units year-to-date, while commercial vehicle sales were 8,341 units.
