National car maker Proton recorded its best sales month of the year with 14,787 units (domestic + export) registered in June despite shortcomings in its parts shortage issues.
The total sales represent a 51% growth over the previous month and boost total sales for the first half of the year to 60,124 units, an increase of 3.9% over the same period in 2021.
Overall, Proton retains the second position behind Perodua in the automotive sales table with an estimated market share of 22.6%. market share for the year meanwhile now stands at 18.2%, a decrease of 5.1% compared to the first six months of last year. Total Industry Volume (TIV) is estimated to be at 331,164 units.
Proton X50 continues to be the group’s best-seller, helping catapult the company to the position of best-selling SUV brand in the country. Last month, it posted its best sales month with 4,473 units registered, allowing the Proton X50 to retain its position as the undisputed sales leader for B-segment SUVs and the overall SUV market.
The Proton X70, refreshed by the recent launch of the 2022 model, achieved its best performance in 20 months with 2,696 units, which also enabled it to retain sales leadership for C-segment SUVs.
Another model the iconic Proton Saga with a new look sold 5,460 units last month, propelling it back to the top of the A-segment sedan class and pushing the model’s cumulative total for the year to 23,484 units.
The fourth segment leader for June is the Proton Exora, which retains leadership in the C-segment MPV class with 513 units registered. Finally, the Proton Persona and Proton Iriz achieved 1,224 and 421 registrations, placing them third and fourth in their respective market segments.
“The announcement that SST incentives would be removed on 1 July also created a surge in bookings as customers rushed to take advantage of the savings offered. PROTON has received more than 150,000 bookings for the first six months of the year and when added to carry-over orders from 2021, we will need to work hard to deliver cars as quickly as possible to eager customers.
“Thankfully, the gradual resolution to our parts shortage issues has not only boosted production but also had a positive effect on the after-sales network. As promised, all our 3S/4S outlets now have three months stock of fast-moving parts (FMP) and this is replicated at our parts warehouse. Supply issues for other parts are also being resolved so we are hopeful of delivering a higher level of after-sales service to our customers soon,” said Roslan Abdullah, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, PROTON.
While PROTON’s domestic sales continue to grow, it’s outpaced by the growth in export sales. 636 units in June lifts the total number of exports for the first half of 2022 to 2,722 units, an increase of 81.2% over the previous year and positioning the company as the top exporting automotive brand in the country.
