BANGKOK : Car production in Thailand dropped 13.62 per cent in February from a year earlier, as a lengthy decline in domestic sales and exports squeezed output for a 19th straight month, the Federation of Thai Industries said on Tuesday.
The fall in production to 115,487 units, however, was smaller than January’s 24.63 per cent year-on-year slump.
Thailand is Southeast Asia’s biggest autos production centre and an export base for some of the world’s top automakers, including Toyota and Honda.
“The less negative figures in February are not a sign of recovery yet because the numbers are very negative and rejection rates of autos loans are still high,” Surapong Paisitpattanapong, spokesperson for the FTI’s automotive industry division, told a press conference.
“We have to wait and see in March for a clearer picture,” he said, adding there were more working days in February than in January.
Domestic car sales dropped 6.68 per cent in February from a year earlier to 49,313 units, after a drop of 12.26 per cent in the previous month, weighed down by tightened auto loans, particularly for pickup trucks, due to high household debt, the federation said.
Thailand’s household debt stood at 16.34 trillion baht ($481 billion) at the end of September 2024, or equivalent to 89.0 per cent of gross domestic product, among the highest ratios in Asia.
A government guarantee for pickup truck loans should help sales and the overall economy, Surapong said. Domestic sales typically account for just under half of Thailand’s output and about a third of vehicles sold at home are pickup trucks.
Exports fell 8.34 per cent in February from a year earlier to 81,323 units after a drop of 28.13 per cent the previous month, due mainly to increased competition from Chinese car brands and emission controls in some countries, Surapong said.
The federation will closely monitor the United States’ policy on auto tariffs, he said.
Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump said levies on automobiles would come as soon as April 2.
The federation has forecast car production to rise 2 per cent this year after declining 20 per cent in 2024 to record the lowest output in four years.
($1 = 33.98 baht)
