Vietnam is the 4th largest automobile producer in Southeast Asia.

According to data from the General Statistics Office, the output of cars assembled in Vietnam after 10 months of 2022 reached 362,500 vehicles, an increase of about 16.4% over the same period in 2021. In terms of passenger cars alone, many automakers have factories in Vietnam such as Toyota, Honda, Ford, Kia, Hyundai, Mazda, VinFast, Mercedes... The growth in the number of domestically assembled cars is a good sign that the domestic auto industry is focusing on domestic production, instead of importing cars for sale like in previous years.

Vietnam's production of more than 360,000 cars ranks 4th in Southeast Asia. According to data from the Southeast Asian Automobile Association (AAF), Thailand is still the country that produces the most cars in the region with nearly 1.6 million units. Cars from this market, in addition to serving domestic demand, are also exported to many countries in the region, including Vietnam. Car models imported from Thailand that sell well in the domestic market include Toyota Corolla Cross, Mitsubishi Attrage...

Below Thailand is Indonesia, the largest new car market in the region. The archipelago country achieved an output of more than 1.2 million vehicles after 10 months of 2022. Similar to Thailand, Indonesia is also where many companies set up car factories to serve both domestic and export markets. Vietnam is considered the "golden land" of cars made in Indonesia with many best-selling models such as Mitsubishi Xpander, Toyota Veloz...

Kia cars completed at Truong Hai factory in Quang Nam.

One place above Vietnam in terms of domestically produced cars is Malaysia. This country has produced more than 560,000 cars in the past 10 months. Unlike Thailand and Indonesia, two countries that do not have their own car brands, Malaysia has Perodua and Proton, which account for the largest share of the domestic market.

The remaining two countries with domestic car production figures are the Philippines, with more than 73,000 vehicles, and Myanmar with more than 3,000 vehicles.

Domestic production is one of the factors that shape a country’s auto industry. Domestic production can serve only the domestic market, or export, or both. Vietnam’s auto industry, with a low localization rate, is mainly sold in the domestic market.

The ranking of output shows that the Vietnamese auto industry has not yet been able to break through compared to the three remaining large factories in the region. However, industry experts predict that Vietnam's domestic auto production will continue to increase in the coming years, possibly even surpassing Malaysia. The reason is that car consumption demand is growing well, the basis for manufacturers to increase production output. In addition, some new manufacturers such as Skoda (Sweden), Chery (China) through domestic partners, are planning to assemble cars in Vietnam in the next 1-2 years.

Thanh Nhan