KUALA LUMPUR: Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd (Perodua) charted a new monthly sales record in October with 27,858 vehicles sold, compared with 26,848 vehicles a year ago thanks to improved production and swift deliveries of vehicles to customers.

       This comes as the group aims to deliver as many vehicles as possible in the fourth quarter of this year, according to president and chief executive officer Datuk Zainal Abidin Ahmad.

       “This achievement is our commitment to our customers and represents a 90.67% increase from 14,160 units sold in September 2021. We are now working to further improve production especially for the rest of the year,” he added.

       Of the 27,858 vehicles registered, 8,761 were Myvis, 5,973 (Axia), 5,257 (Bezza), 3,973 (Ativa), 2,553 (Alza) and 1,341 (Aruz).

       Year-to-date, Perodua registered 146,951 units, which was 14.5% lower than the 171,861 units registered in the same period a year ago.

       In October, Zainal said the car manufacturer also recorded the highest ever number of vehicles made with 29,803 units produced within a month.

       “The 29,803-unit achievement was beyond Perodua’s current production capacity, yet the employees were able to boost their productivity with the same level of quality without new people, equipment or machinery.

       “We also are always mindful of both the safety and health aspects of our entire operations by ensuring that all our employees follow the Covid-19 prevention guidelines while at the same time ensuring that we go beyond all quality requirements,” he noted.

       On the recent announcement of the extension of the car sales tax exemption, Zainal said it would allow the automotive ecosystem more room to recover from the recent lockdown as well as catch up with demand.

       “The extension of the sales tax exemption will also benefit everyone, from consumers to original equipment manufacturers to suppliers who are also affected by the global semiconductor supply shortage,” he noted.

       Moving forward, Zainal said that the last two months of this year would be a challenging period as both Perodua and its ecosystem are still facing supply challenges due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

       “We thank the Malaysian Book of Records for recognising our achievement last year and we will continue to build on that recognition by producing and registering as many vehicles as we can. By doing so, we show our commitment to our customers,” he added.