PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Autoshow 2023 has reaffirmed the sector’s demand, with an array of new launches, among which are those embracing the future of electric vehicles (EVs).
RHB Research conducted a ground check at the Malaysian Autoshow 2023 which further reinforced its view that the overall sector demand remains robust, especially for key marques.
“Our visit reinforced our thesis that underlying demand is strong, fuelled by new launches,” the brokerage said in a sectoral update.
With regards to EVs, RHB Research said demand for them still remains relatively soft.
“We learnt that while many EVs in the market are readily available, some EVs have an uncertain waiting period as dealerships lack visibility on when they will receive their imported units,” the research outfit noted.
RHB Research confirmed that consumers generally still prefer petrol cars over EVs, following discussions with sales personnel.
The research house pointed out that Honda, Toyota, Chery, Great Wall Motors (GWM), BMW and Mercedes had noticeably packed booths during the four-day autoshow, with Honda’s booth being arguably the most crowded.
“While not packed, Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd’s (Perodua) booth had a lot of car buyers awaiting loan approvals,” RHB Research said.It added that most Perodua vehicles have a waiting period of between two to three months, with Bezza and Axia taking six months or more.
RHB Research said Proton’s booth at the autoshow lacked the newly launched X90, although a sales personnel confirmed that orders for the X90 were already being taken at their dealership.
As for Honda, it noted the HR-V and Civic models to have the longest waiting periods.
The waiting period ranges from four to six months, while other models either had ready-stock availability or required one to two months for delivery.
“Toyota’s booth was notably crowded, particularly around the GR models,” RHB Research said, adding that the all-new Vios was experiencing a waiting period of six to seven months.
Other Toyota models had an average waiting period of around three months, it added.
Additionally, RHB Research noted that Chinese brands are making their presence felt.
According to the brokerage, GWM had a large booth displaying a few models including their Ora Good Cat, soon-to-be-launched GWM Cannon, Haval H6 hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) and Haval Jolion HEV.
“There were large crowds surrounding these models, especially for the Ora Good Cat, with some orders being placed on the spot,” it noted.
Meanwhile, the booth of another Chinese brand, Chery, witnessed a swarm of people gathered around the Tiggo 8 Pro and Omoda 5 models.
The autoshow also saw the newly launched Neta V, now the cheapest EV in Malaysia at RM99,800.
Despite the decent crowd at Neta’s booth, RHB Research gathered that orders have been slow.
“While we think Chinese brands will be well received in Malaysia, they are not a threat to the incumbents given the latter’s more attractive resale value,” the research outfit emphasised.
RHB Research, which has an “overweight” call on the automotive sector, believes that the interest in recently launched models should continue to fuel future orders.
It explained that the sector is attractive owing to its earnings visibility and attractive yields of between 4% and 10%.
The research firm named Bermaz Auto Bhd
and UMW Holdings Bhd as its top picks.
It noted that UMW is a clear beneficiary of the strong demand for Toyota and Perodua.
