KARACHI: Sales of locally assembled cars, including light commercial vehicles (LCVs), vans and jeeps, have registered a decline of 15 percent in the first four months of the current fiscal year as compared to the same period last year. According to data released by the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA), car sales for the month of October clocked in at 15,988 units, down by 19 percent as compared to 19,729 units in October last year. “The decline is mainly because of 27% year-on-year reduction in the Pak Suzuki Motor Company (PSMC) sales,” said Ahmed Lakhani, an analyst at JS Global. “Secondly, Indus Motor Company (INDU) also underwent a 26 percent plunge in October, where Corolla sales fell 20 percent. Our channel checks suggest a brief one-off disruption in production led to the decline in sales for the month and is not expected to carry on in future periods,” Lakhani added. “We expect car sales to continue an upbeat trend in FY2016-17 despite conclusion of the Apna Rozgar Taxi Scheme and expect locally manufactured car sales to clock in at around 213, 000 units, an increase of approximately 13 percent,” said Hashim Sohail, an analyst at the Topline Securities.
