Passenger car sales fell 17% y-o-y last May to 8,091 vehicles, as the sector has yet to recover from a consumer demand slump in response to the pandemic, distancing measures, and the partial lockdown of the economy, according to figures from the Automotive Information Council (AMIC). Truck sales also fell 17% y-o-y to 2,176 vehicles. In stark contrast, bus sales soared 57% y-o-y to 1,862 units, from 1,186 in May 2019. Chevrolet remained the best-selling brand across all segments, which includes commercial vehicles such as pickup trucks — while Renault, Toyota, and Hyundai topped the passenger car league table.

The drop in May’s car sales was less pronounced than in April, when sales plummeted by nearly a quarter y-o-y. Car companies saw business grind to a near-complete standstill when the government introduced the virus containment measures towards the end of March. New vehicle licensing was also suspended and traffic police offices were only reopened in May.