Auto TIV to grow 2 per cent this year — MITI

KUALA LUMPUR: The total industry volume ( TIV) for the Malaysian automotive sector is projected to grow by two per cent this year to between 586,000 and 591,000 units, said the Ministry of International Trade and Industry ( MITI).

Total production volume (TPV), which provides a holistic reflection of the vehicles produced locally for both domestic consumption and exports, is expected to increase four per cent this year to between 530,000 and 535,000 units.

MITI Minister, Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed, disclosed these numbers in an update on the 2017 Automotive Industry and 2018 Outlook briefing yesterday.

He said the local automotive industry had committed to RM3.99 billion in investments from this year until 2022, in addition to the RM7.6 billion realised from 2014-2017.

The automotive sector is expected to contribute 4.5 per cent to Malaysia’s gross domestic product growth, compared to four per cent last year.

Energy efficient vehicle ( EEV) penetration in the country is expected to increase for the fifth consecutive year, reaching 60 per cent of vehicles sold.

Last year’s EEV penetration was at 52 per cent, which surpassed the 50 per cent penetration target set by the government.

EEV production increased from 247,912 units in 2016 to 308,807 units in 2017.

“This continuous growth signals growing awareness for EEVs within the Malaysian automotive sphere.

“The acceptance and awareness of energy efficiency is not a function for a single ministry, but highlights the support and participation of all government institutions, automotive original equipment manufacturers and vendors, as well as the public at large,” said Mustapa.

The minister said exports of automot ive par ts and components are expected to increase to RM12.5 bi l lion in 2018 , compared to 2017’s estimated RM12 billion and RM11.2 billion in 2016.

He added that exports of remanufactured parts and components have been forecast to reach RM800 million this year. The segment jumped to RM516.4 million as at November 2017, surpassing the RM510 million mark set in December 2016.

Vehicle exports are expected to reach 34,000 units for 2018 compared to last year’s target of 31,000 units, said MITI. In 2016, vehicles exports was 33,438 units worth RM1.05 billion.

Last year, local i sat ion activities in the automotive industry were valued at RM43.67 bil l ion, with RM15 bil l ion committed by the industry from 2018 to 2022.

Mustapa said the National Automotive Policy 2018 review is expected to be announced in the middle of this year, with the government turning its attention towards non- EEV trending developments such as intelligent mobility, transport systems, vehicle security and green cars technology.

The automotive sector created 27,125 new jobs last year, a 4.93 per cent increase from the 25,850 recorded in 2016, with 31 per cent created being for skilled and highly skilled employment compr i sing techn icians , execut ives, engineers and designers.

“This signifies the increasing perception that the automotive indus t ry is a sec tor of choice for school leavers and graduates, with 29,641 new jobs expected to be created in 2018.” — Bernama SHORT-TERM interbank rates ended stable yesterday on Bank Negara Malaysia’s ( BNM) intervention to absorb excess liquidity from the financial system.

The liquidity surplus in the conventional system declined to RM29.58 billion from RM35.93 billion in the morning, while in the Islamic system, it fell to RM10.59 billion from RM14.70 billion previously.

BNM called for three tenders – one range maturity auction tender, an Islamic range maturity auction tender and a reverse repo tender.

The central bank also conducted a RM29.2 billion conventional money market tender and a RM10.6 billion Qard money market tender, both for one- day money.

The overnight Islamic reference rate stood at 2.97 per cent, while the one-, two- and three-week rates stood at 3.03 per cent, 3.07 per cent and 3.12 per cent respectively.