|
Car price reductions just small flame
The retail prices of cars have decreased by 5% on average, and at most by 11%, but the reductions are just considered a small flame, too miniscule to heat up the cold car market.
“If the car price reductions had been announced in early 2008, my friends and I would have rushed to purchase cars for ourselves. However, the decrease of just one or two thousand dollars for a medium-class car now is not attractive enough to lure us to car salons,” said Thuy, the owner of a gas shop chain which has shops in Thanh Xuan, Cau Giay and Dong Da districts in Hanoi.
Thuy added that she needs to spend money on many other things which are more urgent and more important – a car is a luxury item in the current difficult period.
Other people share the same view as Thuy, saying that a car is not a luxury item in that it is a means of transport, but it is really a luxury item in the context of the current economic difficulties.
“If I had VND500mil now in my pocket, which is enough to buy a car, I would think of making the sum of money produce more money, which I believe is more important than purchasing a car,” Trong Nam, a securities investor, said.
Meanwhile, analysts believe that people are indifferent to cars because the price decreases offered by automobile manufacturers are not attractive.
They say that car prices in Vietnam remain much higher than in many other countries, and remain high in comparison with people’s average incomes. Therefore, the modest car price decreases, equal to the tax decreases, prove to be unattractive.
Meanwhile, analysts have advised automobile manufacturers to take full advantage of the tax decrease to slash retail prices, which they believe will help boost demand.
In fact, several automobile manufacturers have done this. Mercedes Benz Vietnam is an example. While most manufacturers have offered price decreases of 4.6-5% on average in accordance with the tax rate decreases, Mercedes has offered price decreases of up to 6-7%.
Meanwhile, Truong Hai (Kia) has also offered price reductions higher than the average decreases, at 5-11%.
Analysts also said that the automobile industry needs to do more than it has done to lure people to the market.
VietNamNet, TBKTVN
|
