New vehicle sales in Vietnam jumped by 9.8% to 9,518 units in August, from 8,671 units a year earlier, according to data released by the Vietnam Automotive Manufacturers Association.

The vehicle market in August reversed the negative trend of the last several months thanks to sharply higher passenger car sales, with volumes rising by 54% to 4,201 units. SUV and MPV sales were also strongly higher, by 21% at 2,153 units. Commercial vehicles once again were the main drag on the market, with sales falling by 24% to 3,164 units.

Truong Hai, which assembles Kia cars and various commercial vehicles, led the market over the eight-month period with sales rising by 35% to 20,736 units; followed by Toyota with flat sales of 19,058 units; and GM Daewoo with 6,285 units (+9%).