Perodua won’t raise prices in the near term

Perodua president and CEO Datuk Dr Aminar Rashid Salleh(left) speaks to the media after the presentation of 2015 performance review at Bangunan Perodua Sentral,PJ.With him are Perodua Global Manufacturing Sdn Bhd president Datuk Ahmad Suhaimi Hashim.Sia Hong Kiau/The Star

PETALING JAYA: Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd (Perodua) is not planning to raise prices for its cars, at least not for the near term.

“Price increment of our vehicles will depend on a lot of factors, and we are very sensitive to that, as Perodua’s aim is to provide quality and affordable vehicles,” Perodua president and CEO Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh said after Perodua’s 2015 Performance Review presentation in Petaling Jaya on Tuesday.
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“We will continue to monitor. Unless and until the impact of the foreign exchange to our bottom line is great, only then we may need to review the prices.”

The increment of RM1,500 made during the middle of last year for Axia G models was due to the addition of ABS (anti-lock braking system) safety features to the model, not due to the impact of the strengthening US dollar.

Perodua is targeting to achieve sales of 216,000 vehicles and maintain its market share of 32% for 2016.

As a result of the higher sales in 2015 of 213,300 units, the group has also seen an increased production of vehicles with 228,500 units produced.

This is 16.3% more than 2014’s production levels of 196,400 vehicles. 

“Demand for affordable vehicles will continue, and all three Perodua models are within the affordable range,” Aminar said. “Besides that, demand for Axia models will also retain, with average booking numbers of about 10,000 to 11,000 units.”

Based on Perodua’s internal estimate, total industry volume for 2016 is expected to grow slightly to 670,000 to 675,000 units, from 2015’s figure of 667,000 units.

This estimate takes new product launches into account, as other makes are expected to introduce affordable vehicles with good fuel consumption levels.

Although Perodua raked in sales of 213,300 units in 2015, the group’s profit has deteriorated. 

This was due to the strengthening of both the US dollar and Japanese yen, as well as sales of standard variant models.

Perodua still imports an estimate 8% to 10% of its components.

For example, Axia engine-related components are transacted in US dollars while Myvi and Alza components are transacted in yen.