One would rightly assume that with the launch of the 2022 Myvi facelift and fresh from achieving its highest ever monthly sales in October, Perodua would be cruising to its 2021 sales target of 214,000 units. Not so. In fact, that target, already revised downwards from the original 240,000 units, will not be met.
This was revealed by Perodua president and CEO Datuk Zainal Abidin Ahmad at the recent media preview session for the Myvi facelift. He said that he challenges brought upon by the Covid-19 pandemic is still present, and is impacting vehicle production with intermittent stops to halt the spread of the virus.
Aside from Covid, the semiconductor chip supply shortage is still an issue for car manufacturers worldwide as chip makers struggle to keep up with demand, he added.
“These challenges have taken a toll on our production volume, while we are unable to reveal how much of an impact at the moment, suffice to say that Perodua will not be able to meet its 214,000 vehicles sales target set earlier,” he said, adding that it would be considered a good result if P2 manages to break the 200k mark.
Cumulative sales until October stood at 146,951 units, which is 14.5% lower than the the same period last year. To breach 200k, Perodua would have to register an average of 26,500 units per month in November and December.
“That being said, demand for our vehicles are still healthy with a sizeable order book and well as an expected sustained demand moving forward due to the continued sales tax exemption. Because of this we expect both production and sales to have a strong recovery next year,” the P2 chief explained.
In September, Perodua announced a revised sales target of 214,000 units for 2021, 10.8% down from the 240,000 units it announced at the start of the year. The market leader had maintained the 240k unit call in early June, but this was before the impact of the lockdown – which saw car sales and production halted for around two and a half months – was felt.
The original 240k target was a repeat of the market leader’s sales target for 2020, before Covid-19 came along and forced a revision to 210k. Perodua eventually sold 220,163 units last year after a late surge. Perodua’s all time sales record was 240,341 units in 2019. With a full year of Myvi facelift sales ahead, plus the rumoured arrival of an all-new D27A Alza, they’ll be trying again in 2022.
However, it will all depend on the chip shortage situation, which won’t be easing anytime soon. “We are in constant communication and discussions with our suppliers and they are committed to supplying our requirements until the end of this year. But in the first quarter of next year, we are uncertain as we have not gotten any commitment from them (chip suppliers),” Zainal admitted, explaining that chip makers are not committing to more than three months of supply given the current situation.
The post Perodua will not be meeting 2021 sales target of 214,000 units, microchip supply still an issue – CEO appeared first on Paul Tan's Automotive News.
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