Proton's monthly sales dropped by more than 30% in April due to chip shortage

Despite its best efforts to turn around a shortfall in production from the first three months of 2022, April proved to be another challenging month for Proton as the ongoing chip supply issues continued to limit the number of vehicles sold.

Sales for April ended at 8,839 units (domestic and export) which is a decrease of 32.2% compared to March, and 41.1% less compared to the same month in 2021.

While the market share for the month of April is estimated at 15.6%, the market share for the year stands at 17%. Overall, for the whole of 2022, the company ranks second for cumulative sales and market share.

Despite an overall decrease in sales and market share, Proton models still lead three market segments. Proton X50, Proton X70, and Proton Exora continue to be at the top of the B-SUV, C-SUV and C-MPV segments with sales of 1,554 units, 1,530 units, and 301 units respectively.

The Proton X50, Proton X70, and Proton Exora continue to be at the top of the B-SUV, C-SUV and C-MPV segments with sales of 1,554 units, 1,530 units, and 301 units respectively.

The best-selling model in April was the Proton Saga with 4,579 units sold leading to a year-to-date sales total of 14,028 units before the launch of the 2022 Proton Saga.

Overall, it sits in second position in its class with strong export demand expected to keep the current model in the line-up for some time to come.

Roslan Abdullah, the CEO of Proton Edar said, “After two years of pandemic-affected sales, Malaysia’s automotive market continues to show strong growth potential in 2022, as evidenced by the long waiting list for new car deliveries."

"Proton is also trying to catch up to market demand, but we also must acknowledge being the most affected by chip supply issues. Thankfully for our customers, we have secured our supply of chips for May and June and are projecting a quick turnaround in the coming months."

"The situation is still uncertain for the rest of the year and the global car industry is under pressure from rising costs, but the company is working on countermeasures against these issues to ensure our customers get the best products and value in Malaysia and abroad.”  

Export sales for April stood at 456 units, a figure that was also affected by parts supply issues. Year-to-date export sales now stand at 1,573 units, which represents an increase of 109.7% compared to the first four months of 2021.

Pakistan is currently Proton's biggest export market with 1,050 units followed by Egypt and Brunei with 172 and 138 units respectively.