A showroom features an imported car in Ha Noi. Viet Nam's automobile imports declined by over 26 per cent from June to 2,700 units in July. — VNS Photo Truong Vi

HA NOI (Biz Hub)— Automobile imports in July slumped by more than 26 per cent from June to 2,700 units, according to the General Department of Customs.

In the first seven months of this year, the number of imported cars reached 19,700 units, worth US$365 million, marking year-on-year rises of 23.7 per cent and 7.7 per cent in terms of value and volume respectively.

Viet Nam imported 9,900 cars with nine seats or fewer in the seven-month period, up 14.6 per cent, trucks stood at nearly 8,300 units, up 42.2 per cent and those with more than nine seats climbed nearly 3-fold to 338 units.

South Korea remained the biggest car exporter to Viet Nam, accounting for 47 per cent of all imports, up 38.9 per cent over the same period last year, followed by Thailand with 4,000 units, China (2,280) and Japan (1,100).

The customs department said last month's drop was attributed to low sales in the domestic market.

According to recent Viet Nam Automobile Manufacturers' Association statistics, Viet Nam auto sales were estimated to have fallen 3 per cent month-on-month to 9,360 units in July.

The rise in import taxes on used cars in June also deterred the auto import last month, according to experts.

Used cars with nine seats or fewer and an engine displacement of less than 1,000cc were given import tariffs of $5,000 since June 26, compared to $800 before the adjustments.

Cars with cylinder capacity of between 1,000-1,500cc saw taxes lifted to $10,000, an increase of $2,000.

Customs statistics showed that Viet Nam's auto imports decreased to a six-year low last year, reaching only 27,000 cars in 2012, down 50 per cent on 2011. — VNS