Imports of vehicles are expected to increase in 2014 after the reduction of the import tax on cars from ASEAN countries to 50 per cent, effective from January 1 this year.— File Photo

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — The number of imported cars in the first two months of this year increased sharply in terms of value and volume, according to the General Office of Statistics (GSO).

The country imported 6,000 completely built units (CBU) worth US$113 million in the January-February period, an increase of 39.8 per cent in volume and 26.1 per cent in value year-on-year, the GSO estimated.

The figures reflect the recent influx of retail units of international auto makers such as Lexus, Infiniti and MG Car.

"More and more people choose imported cars instead of locally assembled cars as the quality of the imported ones is much better," said Luong Van Dung, director of Northern Automobile Company, a prominent auto dealer in Ha Noi.

Dung told Viet Nam News that the rising number of imported vehicles is evidence of restored consumer confidence following the improvement in the economy.

In 2013 also, there was a marked rise in the imports of CBUs. As many as 34,500 CBUs, valued at US$709 million, were imported, marking an increase of 25.9 per cent in volume and 15.2 per cent in value, year-on-year.

However, the number of vehicles imported this year is lower than in 2011, when 54,600 units, valued at over $1 billion, were imported.

Imports of vehicles are expected to increase in 2014 after the reduction of the import tax on cars from ASEAN countries to 50 per cent, effective from January 1 this year.

The tax cut is in compliance with Viet Nam's signing of the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA).

While ASEAN countries are not centres of automobile production, there are some large manufacturing giants such as Japan's Toyota and Honda in the region.

Statistics by the Customs Office revealed that 8,826 cars, valued at nearly $150 million, were imported from Thailand and Indonesia in the first 11 months of 2013, more than double the imports in the same period in 2012. — VNS