Cars are "unsold" during the "ghost month" due to taboo psychology

Of which, passenger car sales reached 13,815 units (down 2%), commercial vehicles reached 6,313 units (down 9%), and specialized vehicles reached 376 units (down 4%) compared to the previous month.

Also according to VAMA statistics, in August, domestically assembled car production reached 14,875 units (down 18%), while imported cars reached 5,629 units (up 66% compared to the previous month).

Accumulated from the beginning of the year to the end of August, total sales of the whole market decreased by 5% compared to the same period last year.

In terms of segment, passenger cars increased by 9%, commercial vehicles decreased by 20%, and specialized vehicles decreased by 43% compared to the same period last year.

As of the end of August, sales of assembled cars increased by 10%, while imported cars decreased by 41% compared to the same period last year.

Due to the influence of the "ghost month" (the 7th lunar month), Vietnamese customers have a taboo mentality, so most car companies' sales in August 2018 decreased.

For example, in August, Hyundai Thanh Cong sold a total of 5,573 cars, down 5% compared to the previous month. Hyundai Grand i10 is still the model leading in sales.

Hyundai's car models all had a slight decline in sales. Specifically, Grand i10 sold 1,619 cars in August, down 11% compared to July 2018 and reached 16,220 cars in the first 8 months of the year. Accent sales had a slight decline, but still maintained the 2nd position with 1,378 cars sold in August. Cumulative sales from April 2018 reached 5,864 cars.

Toyota Vietnam (TMV) also sold only 4,729 vehicles (excluding Lexus vehicles), down 18% compared to the same period in 2017.

Notably, with 1,710 cars sold, Toyota Vios surpassed Hyundai Grand i10 in terms of sales, retaking the throne of the best-selling car in Vietnam in August 2018.