Malaysian

Malaysian

PROTON'S bonnet badge shows a tiger, but a fish might be more

appropriate because the state-backed Malaysian car-maker is going from

being the largest resident in the small pond of its protected local

market to being a minnow in the deep waters of the global car

industry.

the state-backed Malaysian car-maker is going from being the largest

resident in the small pond of its protected local market to being a

minnow in the deep waters of the global car industry

Malaysia becomes a richer, more discerning car market with lower trade

barriers

Southeast asia's economy is growing again, and that has triggered

record vehicle sales.

in Southeast Asia Malaysia is second hootest market after china

is clearly the biggest [sales] opportunity for car manufacturers

anywhere in Asia.

Just 1 in 35 Indonesians owns a car, compared with 1 in 14 Thais and 1

in 7 Malaysians.

Right now car purchasers can get loans on a new model with as little

as 5% cash up front. That compares with the 20% down payments common

just a few years ago.

Unlike in China and India, big global auto makers aren't rushing to

build manufacturing capacity in high-risk Indonesia.

Proton and Perodua are Malaysia's two main domestic manufacturers,

claiming over 70 percent of a market where demand is estimated at

around 500,000 cars this year. Two other companies also assemble cars

locally.

While the government continues to encourage small and medium-scale

players, there may also be a need to consider steps to consolidate

among the many vendors (suppliers) in the automotive industry in order

to gain scale, financial strength and managerial talent to expand

internationally," Najib Razak told the conference.

Political system

1. government

While the government continues to encourage small and medium-scale

players, there may also be a need to consider steps to consolidate

among the many vendors (suppliers) in the automotive industry in order

to gain scale, financial strength and managerial talent to expand

internationally," Najib Razak told the conference.

That suppliers power

2. Malaysia drops duties, adds tax

Import duties on cars from outside Southeast Asia will be lowered to

35 percent for knocked-down models, and to 80 percent to 200 percent

on fully built models, the government said.

Malaysia said it would wait until 2008 to further reduce motor vehicle

import duties, to the required range of zero percent to 5 p

“On this basis, the government does not expect major price changes in

the cars produced or assembled in Malaysia during 2005.” ercent.

Market

1. Malaysia's market is too small to sustain more than one or two

domestic car makers, given increasing competition from imports.

2. Malaysia

Market Summary

Malaysia is a member of the Association of South East Asian Nations