VietNamNet Bridge – More and more motorbike manufacturers have come to Vietnam. More and more motorbike models have been marketed. However, many products have been unsold, while the market is believed to be reaching a saturation point.

Motorbikes left unsold

Motorbike dealers are complaining that they incurred big losses in 2013, and cannot see any improvement in 2014.

A senior executive of Savico, a general service company, said while the automobile market witnessed a strong recovery in 2013, with a growth rate of over 20 percent, the motorbike market experienced a very tough year.

Due to a sharp drop in demand, the number of motorbikes sold at the Savico chain dropped by 21 percent in 2013, while sales and services decreased by 15 percent.

Analysts said that sales have been going very slowly since the beginning of the year. Many sales agents have had to shut down their businesses, while some of them have “disappeared” to hide from creditors.

A Honda sales agent in Thanh Xuan District in Hanoi revealed that previously, he could sell over 300 motorbikes a month. That figure has dropped by 2/3 in recent months, causing him a loss of VND200 million a month.

The sales agents that distribute Yamaha’s, Suzuki’s, and SYM’s products have voiced the same complaint. A dealer in Hanoi said he has sold only 30 bikes since March, though he keeps his shop open from 7.30 am to 8 pm.

Motorbike manufacturers, though remaining more optimistic than the sales agents, admitted that they are experiencing difficult days. This explains why they are not opening more sales outlets, and in fact are trying to shut down some existing showrooms to cut down on expenses.

New models still marketed

Though sales have been going slowly, motorbikes manufacturers still keep busy. Many new motorbike models were launched in the first months of 2014.

Piaggio Vietnam has introduced Liberty Restyling 2014 model, targeting high income earners. The model has been advertised as “having new features but sold with the old price”. The pricing policy of the manufacturer aims to attract more customers.

The manufacturer has revealed that it plans to launch another scooter model in April which will offer more choices to customers.

SYM earlier this year launched Attila Elizabeth Smart Idle, Honda Vietnam introduced the PCX 2014, while Lambretta is marketing the Lamsport for men.

According to Costantino Sambuy, CEO of Piaggio Vietnam, the motorbike market in Vietnam is growing by 8 percent annually. It is believed that the demand for scooters will increase further in the future, as per capita income increases to $2,600 per annum by 2017.

This explains why manufacturers still continue pouring more money to Vietnam to expand their factories. Honda Vietnam, for example, after completing construction of its third factory, has put into operation a piston workshop worth VND230 billion.

Vietnam is now the fourth largest motorbike market in Asia, after China, India and Indonesia. It is gradually replacing Thailand as the motorbike production base of the world’s motorbike manufacturers.

However, the information that Vietnam has become a “motorbike power” does not necessarily make Vietnamese happy.

Vietnam dreamed of developing the automobile industry, but it has failed to do that. After tens of years of development, it has not been able to move beyond the stage of automobile assembly. Meanwhile, car prices in Vietnam are twice or triple as much as those of other countries.

Tran Thuy