Automotive Sector Indonesia: Car Sales Continue to Expand
Car sales in Indonesia in May 2017 were in line with expectations. The Indonesian Automotive Industry Association (Gaikindo) said car sales in the month prior to Idul Fitri (the celebrations that mark the end of the Ramadan month) always tend to show a modest rise every year, specifically passenger cars.
Based on data from Gaikindo, wholesales rose 4.55 percent month-on-month (m/m) to 93,661 vehicle units in May 2017. Growth was primarily supported by growing sales of passenger cars such as the multi-purpose vehicle (MPV), the sport utility vehicle (SUV), and the low sport utility vehicle (LSUV).
Read more: Overview of Indonesia's Automotive Industry
Sales of the low multi-purpose vehicle (LMPV) slightly fell in May 2017 to 20,103 units, while sales of the low-cost green car (LCGC) climbed modestly to 20,301 units, implying the LCGC was the most bought passenger car in Indonesia in May 2017. This vehicle entered the Indonesian market in late-2013 and proved highly popular due to its affordable price (made possible because the government offered tax incentives to car manufacturers that would produce a vehicle that meets the government's fuel efficiency target requirements.
So far in 2017 a total of 467,067 cars have been sold in Indonesia, up 6.00 percent from 440,639 units in the January-May 2016 period. Earlier, a 5 percent (y/y) rise was targeted by Gaikindo and Indonesia's Industry Ministry for full-year 2017 car sales in Indonesia. Considering we see no factors that could drastically impact negatively on car sales this year, the aforementioned target should be achieved.
Indonesian Car Sales (CBU):
| Month | Sold Cars 2013 |
Sold Cars 2014 |
Sold Cars 2015 |
Sold Cars 2016 |
Sold Cars 2017 |
| January | 96,718 | 103,609 | 94,194 | 85,002 | 86,324 |
| February | 103,278 | 111,824 | 88,740 | 88,208 | 95,159 |
| March | 95,996 | 113,067 | 99,410 | 94,092 | 102,336 |
| April | 102,257 | 106,124 | 81,600 | 84,770 | 89,587 |
| May | 99,697 | 96,872 | 79,375 | 88,567 | 93,661 |
| June | 104,268 | 110,614 | 82,172 | 91,488 | |
| July | 112,178 | 91,334 | 55,615 | 61,891 | |
| August | 77,964 | 96,652 | 90,537 | 96,282 | |
| September | 115,974 | 102,572 | 93,038 | 92,541 | |
| October | 112,039 | 105,222 | 88,408 | 92,106 | |
| November | 111,841 | 91,327 | 86,938 | 100,365 | |
| December | 97,706 | 78,802 | 73,264 | 86,547 | |
| Total | 1,229,916 |
1,208,019 | 1,013,291 | 1,061,859 |
| 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | |
| Car Sales (car units) |
894,164 | 1,116,230 |
1,229,916 | 1,208,019 | 1,013,291 | 1,061,859 |
| Car Production (car units) |
n.a. | n.a. | 1,208,211 | 1,298,532 | 1,098,780 | 1,177,797 |
Source: Gaikindo