UMW Holdings has announced that its automotive division is right on track to meet the projected full-year sales target of 53,000 units, following a boost in sales for UMW Toyota Motor and Perodua (of which it has a 38% equity stake in).

In a press statement, the Group’s auto market share is estimated to be at 58% in October, a sizeable increase over the 51.4% it achieved in October 2019. More specifically, UMW Toyota sold 6,468 vehicles in October 2020, up 15.4% from the 5,605 units shifted the month before. The most popular cars were the Vios, Yaris and Hilux.

In total, UMWT said it sold 43,807 units in the first 10 months of 2020. Meanwhile, the company is preparing to introduce the Yaris facelift soon. It was launched as a CKD model in April 2019, and has apparently been the top non-national hatchback model since.

As for Perodua, it sold 26,852 cars in October (a 7.3% increase over the 25,035 units sold in September), the highest monthly sales figure ever achieved in its 27-year history. UMW Holdings credits this to the sales tax exemption, which helped lift sales in the second half of the year.

For the first 10 months of 2020, Perodua managed to sell 171,864 units. That’s 81.8% of its projected yearly volume of 210,000 units. The company said Perodua’s two manufacturing plants have been running at near-maximum capacity since August to meet the surging demand.

UMW Holdings Berhad president and group CEO, Dato’ Ahmad Fuaad Kenali said: “The Group has managed to stage a strong recovery in the second half of the year, thanks to the sales tax exemption implemented by the government to boost the local automotive industry following disruptions caused by Covid-19. We are confident that the strong sales momentum would sustain until the end of the year, for us to achieve our sales targets for the year.”