Car sales up 30 percent in Q1

Car sales rose 30 percent to 225,061 units in the first quarter this year from 174,074 units in the same period last year, an association says.

Indonesian Automotive Manufacturers Association chairman Jongkie D Sugiarto Wednesday attributed the car sales hike to the rupiah appreciation against the US dollar, which further reduced costs of sole agents importing spare parts and other components.

“Sole agents could provide discount prices to local car buyers,” he said as quoted by kontan.co.id.

Toyota Astra Motor posted the highest sales with 85,426 cars, followed by Mitsubishi with 34,227 cars and Astra Daihatsu Motor with 24, 169 cars.