The Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA) has released the statistics for the month of November 2021 and the auto industry is embracing them with open arms. The year-on-year (Nov ‘20 – Nov ‘21) car sales are up even though the month-on-month (Oct ‘21 – Nov ‘21) sales have declined.
The Overall Picture
As mentioned above, the year-on-year (YOY) auto sales have gone up.
If you look at the sales numbers for the month of November 2020 for all the most common cars that you see on the road (Honda City, Civic, Toyota Corolla, Yaris, Suzuki Alto, Cultus, Swift, Wagon R and Bolan, etc.) – 11,914 units were sold collectively. When you compare this number with November 2021 – 15,351 units were sold. So, YOY car sales were up by almost 29%.
While the overall picture looks positive, car sales have been declining for the past couple of months. For example, if you look at the same segment of automobiles, their total sales in the month of October 2021 were 17,413 while their total sales in the month of November 2021 were 15,351. So, the month-on-month (MOM) sales declined by almost 12%.
Latest Sales Numbers
Let’s take a look at the sales numbers of various auto manufacturers, their popular models with their YOY and MOM sales.
Honda Atlas Cars (Pakistan) Ltd. most popular models are City, Civic and BRV. Their latest sales numbers, both YOY and MOM, are as follows.
Honda City and Civic (All Variants)
Honda’s two most popular models – City and Civic sales (YOY) numbers are:
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 2088 | 2771 | 32% |
MOM numbers are:
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 2651 | 2771 | 4.5% |
So, City and Civic had positive numbers both for YOY and MOM. Though the overall car sales have been down for the past couple of months, both City and Civic seem to have dodged this trend. .
Honda BRV
Honda’s other hottest selling model, BRV posted the following (YOY) sales numbers:
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 149 | 239 | 60% |
This subcompact crossover SUV’s MOM sales numbers are:
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 7 | 239 | 3314% |
These numbers are too good to be true. PAMA Report might have posted wrong numbers, if not,this is exponential growth in terms of sales figures for Honda BRV.
Toyota Indus Sales Numbers
Indus Motor Company Limited (IMC) is the maker of some of the most popular cars in Pakistan, including Corolla, Yaris, Fortuner and Hilux.
Let’s take a look at their YOY and MOM sales numbers.
Toyota Corolla (All Variants):
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 1704 | 2786 | 63% |
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 3341 | 2786 | -16% |
As can be seen, Corollas’ YOY sales numbers are really impressive; however, MOM figures will be a cause of concern for the company with 16% less sales in the month of November 2021 than in October 2021.
Toyota Yaris (All Variants)
Unlike in India, Yaris has done remarkably well in the Pakistani auto market. Let’s take a look at this subcompact sedan’s YOY and MOM sales numbers.
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 2338 | 1975 | -15% |
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 2037 | 1975 | -3% |
It is clear from the latest sales numbers that Yaris isn’t doing as well as was expected from it.
Toyota Fortuner
Toyota’s flagship utility vehicle, Fortuner is a mid-size SUV, which seems to have captured this niche segment in Pakistan. However, its sales numbers may or may not portray a different picture.
Let’s look at its YOY and MOM sales numbers.
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 349 | 724 | 107% |
Fortuner has posted very impressive sales numbers for the year 2020-2021.
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 872 | 724 | -17% |
While it’s YOY numbers are really impressive, Fortuners’ MOM numbers must be a cause of concern for Toyota. There could be a variety of reasons for this, some of which are laid down below.
Toyota Hilux
Hilux is a pick-up truck, which is often used as a security vehicle in VIP entourages. Let’s look at its sales numbers to ascertain how common it is on the roads.
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 551 | 830 | 50% |
Hilux’s YOY sales numbers are impressive with 50% more sold this year than in 2020.
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 647 | 830 | 28% |
Hilux’s MOM sales are positive as well. So, overall this pick-up truck has done well in Pakistan.
Pak Suzuki Sales Numbers
Suzuki is perhaps the most prominent brand in Pakistan with a variety of models and their variants. Suzuki’s Swift, Cultus, Wagon R, Alto and Bolan are the most commonly seen vehicles on the road. Let’s take a look at their YOY and MOM sales numbers.
Suzuki Alto
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 2723 | 2420 | -11% |
Pakistan’s “hottest selling car” is perhaps not that hot when it comes to its YOY sales numbers.
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 5092 | 2420 | -52% |
Alto’s MOM sales numbers are really concerning for the company with a 52% sales dip.
Suzuki Wagon R
One of the most prominent and popular kei cars in Pakistan, Wagon R is the automobile behind the Uber revolution in Pakistan. Let’s look at its YOY and MOM sales numbers and see whether it is doing any better than Alto.
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 881 | 1989 | 125% |
Wagon Rs YOY sales numbers are really impressive with 125% more sales this year than in the previous year.
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 1291 | 1989 | 54% |
This kei car’s month-on-month sales are impressive too with 54% more sales in November than in October.
Suzuki Cultus
Cultus’s YOY sales numbers are as follows:
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 1517 | 1651 | 8.8% |
While not huge, Cultus had positive sales figures from 2020 to 2021.
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 1340 | 1651 | 23% |
While Cultus’s YOY sales numbers may not be overly impressive, its MOM sales numbers are really impressive with 23% more sales in November than in the previous month.
Suzuki Bolan
This mini MPV is the main “workhorse” on the roads of Pakistan. It’s YOY and MOM sales numbers are as follows:
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 549 | 1189 | 116% |
Pak Suzuki must be really pleased with these sales numbers. 116% more sales is an exponential growth in sales figures in one year.
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 1071 | 1189 | 11% |
While not very impressive, the MOM sales figures are still in the positive for this mini MPV.
SUVs
Another automobile segment which has done really well in terms of sales is the compact SUV category. Kia Sportage, Hyundai Tucson and MG ZS and HS are the front contenders in this segment. Unfortunately, PAMA has not provided sales numbers for Kia and MG; however, Hyundai Tucson sales numbers are available.
Hyundai Tucson
This compact SUVs YOY sales numbers are:
| Nov 2020 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 371 | 49 | -86% |
Its MOM sales numbers are as follows:
| Oct 2021 | Nov 2021 | Difference |
| 350 | 49 | -86% |
Hyundai Tucson is perhaps the biggest loser of 2021. Both its YOY and MOM sales are in the negative and must be a cause of concern for the company.
The Biggest Winners
The numbers speak for themselves. PAMA’s latest report is a mixed bag in which some have done well both YOY and MOM, while others have done well in terms of YOY sales only and not when it comes to their MOM sales.
BRVs MOM sales numbers are unbelievable if accurate, Similarly, Toyota Hilux and Suzuki Wagon R, Cultus and Bolan and Honda City/Civic have posted impressive numbers on the board.
The Biggest Losers
Three names stand out here – Hyundai Tucson, Suzuki Alto and Toyota Yaris. These three have posted negative numbers for both YOY and MOM sales.
Reasons for Sales Decline
Sales tend to decline towards the end of the year for a variety of reasons, expecting new models in the coming year being the main one. Some of the other reasons are:
- Stringent auto financing requirements from the banks
- Rising financing rates
- Rising automobile prices
What to Expect in Future
While not every automobile has posted negative MOM sales numbers, automobile sales numbers overall have been declining for the past two months. This trend is expected to continue as long as the prices keep rising and auto financing rates stay high.
As the prices of almost all the automobiles have gone up recently and this upward trend is expected to continue, expect more negative sales. However, as can be seen, some will get hit more than others.
Let us know if these numbers will affect your car buying decision. What more would you like PAMA to report on? For example, we would like to know the YOY and MOM sales numbers of Kia Sportage and MG SUVs.
Leave a Reply