KUALA LUMPUR (May 19): Malaysia’s new vehicle sales increased 17% to 72,113 units in April from 61,807 units in the same month last year, according to the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA).

April’s sales were also 14% higher than the 63,489 units sold in March, as production picked up following plant shutdowns during the Aidilfitri holiday and stronger demand from newly launched car models, said MAA in a statement on Tuesday.

Of the total, passenger vehicle sales increased 19% to 67,893 units from 57,231 in the April 2025, while commercial vehicle sales dropped 8% to 4,220 units from 4,576.

For the first four months of 2026, total industry sales rose 2% to 254,318 units from 250,239 units in the same period last year. Passenger vehicle sales were up 2% to 238,418 units, while commercial vehicle sales contracted 2% to 15,900 units.

On the production side, output in April rose 25% year-on-year to 70,611 units from 56,602 units, comprising 66,351 passenger vehicles and 4,260 commercial vehicles. However, cumulative production for the January-April period fell 2% to 229,988 units from 234,205 a year earlier.

Looking ahead, MAA said it expects sales momentum to remain firm in May.