Perodua Saw Growth In First Quarter 2021 As It Works To Fulfill Ativa Demand

In the first three months of 2021, Perodua sold about 57,911 vehicles, which represents a year-on-year growth of 29% (up from 44,977 vehicles in the same period of 2020). While this may look impressive especially since this is compared to the pre-pandemic days of 2020, it is within expectations for Perodua as consumers start to consider reliable, budget-friendly options during a crisis. This increase in sales during the first quarter of 2021 can also be attributed to the launch of the Perodua Ativa SUV in March.

“March saw a jump in our sales numbers to an estimated 24,433 units, underpinned by strong demand, particularly for the Ativa, which has collected 14,574 bookings since we began order-taking on 19 February,” Perodua President and Chief Executive Officer Dato’ Zainal Abidin Ahmad said.

Perodua’s month-on-month registrations jumped by 47.3% to 24,433 units in March 2021, compared to 16,583 units in February.

Dato Zainal added that out of the 14,574 Ativa bookings received so far, 4,345 units have been delivered since the new model’s launch. The demand for the Ativa is currently skewed 67% towards the range-topping AV variant, which is within its expectations.

“This makes the Perodua Ativa the best-selling compact SUV in the country in the month of March. We are glad that the Perodua Ativa has gotten off to such a strong start, and that we well surpassed our 3,000-unit monthly delivery target in the first month. We thank Malaysians for their support and trust. On our end, we are committed towards timely deliveries of every order made,” Dato’ Zainal said.

Also in the first quarter of 2021, Perodua’s production volume amounted to 60,383 vehicles, up from 49,280 vehicles in 1Q20 (+23%). “For now, our biggest challenge is the semiconductor chip shortage, which is having varying impacts on carmakers on a global scale. We are working with our partners to find alternative supply while at the same time monitoring the situation on a daily basis to ensure continued operation of our production lines,” he said. Perodua targets a production of 272,000 units (+23% from 2020’s 220,968 units) and 2.4 million service intakes (+20% from 2020’s 2 million service intakes) this year.

According to Dato’ Zainal, Perodua will still be able to meet its initial 2021 sales target of 240,000 vehicles, despite the semiconductor issue. Perodua’s 2021 sales target represents a 9% increase from the 220,163 units sold in 2020, and is expected to lead to a record purchase of RM6.5 billion worth of locally-sourced components this year. The company’s 2Q21 sales numbers should look even more impressive year-on-year as the second quarter of 2020 saw disruptions to production and sale activities.