According to data released by the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), domestic car sales in Thailand increased by 25.6% year-on-year in August, reaching 59809 units, achieving the sixth consecutive month of growth. This round of market recovery is mainly driven by the passenger car sector. The electrification process of the passenger car market has significantly accelerated, with sales of various electric vehicle models increasing across the board, while the share of traditional fuel passenger cars continues to shrink.

In terms of segmented vehicle models, the sales volume of pure electric passenger cars in Thailand in August was 19721, a year-on-year increase of 113.3%; Sales of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) reached 14807 units, a year-on-year increase of 31.8%; The sales of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) reached 1053 units, a year-on-year increase of 126.5%. On the other hand, traditional internal combustion engine passenger cars sold only 7973 units in the month, a year-on-year decrease of 17%. The proportion of pure electric, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles in passenger car sales has exceeded 80%. The Thai passenger car market is accelerating its transition to electrification, with pure electric vehicles alone accounting for nearly one-third of the total passenger car sales for the month.

Under the dual support of high demand for electric vehicles and export orders, Thailand's total automobile production in August increased by 10.9% year-on-year, recording 124646 vehicles. Surapong Paisitpattanapong, spokesperson for the Automotive Industry Department of the Federation of Thai Industries, stated in an interview with Nikkei News that although the automotive market is showing signs of recovery, overall sales are still lower than before the pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, the monthly sales of Thai cars were generally between 70000 and 80000 units.

Analysis suggests that the Middle East conflict has pushed up fuel prices, prompting consumers to shift towards non fuel vehicles; At the same time, the supply of cost-effective electric vehicles has increased, especially with a large number of Chinese brands entering the market, further stimulating local demand for electric vehicle consumption. However, the industry still faces practical difficulties, with weak purchasing power of domestic residents and tightened credit approval suppressing the market. Traditional core category pickup trucks in Thailand are under pressure: in August, sales of 1-ton pickup trucks reached 5177 units, a year-on-year decline of 10.8%; Sales of double row pickup trucks reached 4910 units, a year-on-year decrease of 3.6%.

Behind the explosive sales of electric vehicles, the weakness of the Thai market's high dependence on imported electric vehicles has become prominent. In August, Thailand produced 13126 pure electric passenger vehicles, significantly lower than the pure electric sales of 19721 vehicles in the same month. From January to August this year, Thailand produced 60578 domestic pure electric passenger vehicles, but the market sales reached 145132 units. Calculations show that about 58% of the pure electric vehicle models sold in the market during this period came from imports.

Imported electric vehicles cannot create employment opportunities and industrial value for the country, "Surapong Paisitpattanapong called for adjusting consumption tax rules to balance the competitive environment between traditional car companies and emerging electric vehicle manufacturers. The Federation of Thai Industries pointed out that the current tax system is too biased towards electric vehicles: the consumption tax on locally assembled electric vehicles is only 2%, while the consumption tax on imported electric vehicles is 10%; The consumption tax range for hybrid vehicles is 6% -15%, while the consumption tax for traditional fuel passenger vehicles can reach as high as 25% -35%.

At present, the Thai government has agreed in principle to revise the framework of the automobile consumption tax. Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas revealed that the new version of the automobile tax policy is expected to be finalized by the end of September, improving the competitiveness of the local automobile industry through tax system optimization and alleviating the high dependence on imported electric vehicles.