This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on October 17, 2017

KUALA LUMPUR: Vehicle sales dropped 14.8% to 40,981 units in September from 48,125 units in the same month a year ago, says the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA).

Compared with August sales of 51,720 units, the September sales represented a decline of 10,739 units or 20.8%, MAA said in a statement.

The association cited “short working month and more stringent hire-purchase loan approvals” as the reason for the drop in vehicle sales.

Despite the monthly drop, MAA said cumulative vehicle sales from January to September at 425,711 units were still 1.78% higher compared with the 418,277 units recorded in the same period last year.

As for vehicle production, MAA said 38,213 units were manufactured in September, a 7.82% decline from 41,453 units in the same month last year.

Year to date, vehicle manufacturing in Malaysia came in at 381,171 units, a 1.5% drop compared with 386,965 units in the same period last year.