Workers assemble cars at the Huyndai Thanh Cong Factory in Gian Khau Industrial Zone in the nothern province of Ninh Binh. — VNA/VNS Photo Danh Lam

HA NOI (Biz Hub)— Vietnamese auto businesses imported about 5,000 completely built-up unit (CBU) cars, worth US$131 million, in February, 1,000 cars less than the previous month, the General Statistic Office (GSO) said.

This was a sharp fall in car imports this year, but had been expected because of the nine-day Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday in February, during which business operations and transactions were suspended in the market.

In addition, the government began applying a new calculation of a special consumption tax on January 1, 2016, which caused the price of imported cars to rise by an estimated five per cent. Therefore, many people bought cars in the last few months of last year, before the new calculation came into effect.

The turnover of imported cars is predicted to increase this year, but the auto market will not experience a ‘boom' as in 2015.

GSO said Viet Nam imported 11,000 cars in the first two months of this year, worth $280 million, a decrease of 31.1 per cent in quantity and 11.9 per cent in value year-on-year. — VNS