KUALA LUMPUR: Proton's car sales grew 17.1 per cent in April over the same month in 2023 with 11,025 units sold, helped by sales of its best-selling Proton Saga.

In a statement today, Proton said sales for the first four months of 2024 also closed stronger with 50,175 units, higher than the 49,702 units sold from January to April 2023.

The Proton Saga, registered 5,031 units in April with year-to-date sales up 8.8 per cent to 23,278 units as it remains an attractive proposition to car buyers with its blend of features, driveability, and value.

The Proton S70 saw 1,635 units sold in April, resulting in cumulative sales of 7,463 units for 2024.

Total industry volume (TIV) for the Malaysian automotive market meanwhile also grew for the same period to an estimated 59,100 units and a cumulative total of 261,345 units for the year.

Market share for Proton is estimated at 18.7 per cent in April alone while year-to-date market share is forecast to be at 19.2 per cent, maintaining its second position in the overall national automotive sales ranking.

"The slowdown in automotive sales in April, where TIV shrank by 16.8 per cent compared to March 2024, can be attributed to the long holiday period as original equiment manufacturers, dealerships and other members of the local automotive ecosystem took time off to celebrate Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

However, the sustained demand for Proton models is further bolstered by ongoing efforts in quality improvement with better Global Customer Product Audit (GCPA) scores since 2019, instilling greater confidence among drivers," said Proton Edar chief executive officer Roslan Abdullah.

Proton said year-to-date export sales jumped by 38.5 per cent from 603 units to 835 units year-to-date in April.

Leading the pack in terms of exports is the Proton Saga with 427 units sold year-to-date, an increase of 16 per centfrom 368 units from the same period last year.

The Proton X50 came in second with 176 units sold while the Proton S70 recorded 89 units in its only export market - Brunei, for the first four months of the year.

"Export sales remain a vital pillar to Proton's long-term goals and with the Proton S70 ramping up its sales in the domestic as well as export market, we are confident of achieving sustainable exports sales growth this year and raise the contribution of export sales to our annual sales volume.

This year, we have added Trinidad and Tobago to our export portfolio and reestablished our foothold in Bangladesh.

Proton is confident of the  market rebounding in the short to medium term as there is still a lot of demand from car buyers and therefore, it is crucial for us to continue to do our best, ensuring excellence in every endeavour undertaken," Roslan added.

https://www.nst.com.my/business/corporate/2024/05/1046809/proton-sales-grew-17pc-april-popularity-proton-saga-s70