As expected, with the whole country virtually shut down during the month of April, new vehicle sales did not take place at all. The latest summary of April data from the Malaysia Automotive Association (MAA) shows that only 141 vehicles were delivered, of which 131 were passenger vehicles. We’re not sure how these were delivered with the Movement Control Order (MCO) active but they would have been units already registered earlier since the JPJ was closed.

This is the lowest ever volume in the history of the industry; even in the first year of local assembly in 1967, the Total Industry Volume (TIV) was 16,615 units. The only time there would have been such a massive fall would probably have been during World War II!

The MCO was activated on March 18 so there were at least some two weeks for sales and deliveries, and the TIV for that month was 22,478 units, about half the number sold in February. There’s obviously no point comparing the TIV of April 2020 to that of 2019 but if you want to know, for the same month last year, the TIV was 49,935 units.

Production likewise fell since factories were ordered to shut down although at a later stage of the MCO, limited production was permitted – but only for vehicles to be exported and not for the domestic market. Only 275 vehicles were produced, of which 240 were passenger vehicles.

Of course, there was no point assembling for the domestic market anyway since the showrooms were closed and dealerships could not operate so they would not have needed new stocks. Production for the domestic market has only resumed recently and only for the high-volume brands would there be a need to meet outstanding orders made prior to the MCO starting.

At the beginning of this year, the MAA forecast the 2020 TIV as 600,000 units but in view of the massive contraction, it has revised the number by 33% to 400,000 units. That’s a TIV level almost similar to what was achieved 19 years ago in 2001. Analysts in some companies do not think it will be that bad and forecast a range of between 8% and 16.5%. However, the MAA normally makes it forecasts based on input from its members, the car companies, who would have a better sense of the market.

With only 141 units in April, the TIV can’t really go any lower so May should see a higher number. But with the impact of the pandemic on the country and the financial strains on consumers, there may be reluctance to buy new vehicles in the immediate future. Many will have reduced incomes if they have not lost their jobs altogether, and there is still much uncertainty about the future.

Over 50% drop in sales as MCO brings car industry to a standstill

It has been said so many times: no interstate travel is allowed during this Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) period and that includes balik kampung trips for Hari Raya this year. Yet, in recent days, the traffic has been increasing on certain highways, especially those leading out of Selangor to other states. While permission is granted to those travelling for legitimate work reasons, surely there can’t be so many that a kilometres-long jam started forming.

So it must be people ‘trying luck’ to go to another state where their kampung or hometown is, and if they cannot pass through the roadblock, they might try again tomorrow. So far, it seems the police have been lenient and those without permits are told to turn around. According to the police, a total of 118,852 vehicles were at 14 roadblocks around Selangor from last May 13 until yesterday, and over 2,400 were not allowed to continue and had to turn back.

Now, the authorities have decided enough is enough and there will be immediate issuance of summonses for not following the CMCO. The fine is RM1,000 and magistrates are unlikely to be tolerant of this defiance of the law, and might even add a jail term.

There will be more roadblocks set up and in Selangor, 5 roadblocks will be set up along the North-South Expressway as well as other highways leading out of the Klang Valley. Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, the Senior Minister who briefs the media daily on CMCO developments, said that that ‘there will be no more interstate travel allowed during the CMCO period’. He advised people not to waste time waiting at police stations to apply for permits. “The police will not allow anyone to travel interstate anymore,” he said.

Why is there a prohibition on interstate travel? The reason is to prevent wider spread of the COVID-19 virus around the country. Each time an area has infected persons, the Health Ministry has to quickly do contact-tracing to identify who the carrier was in contact with and quarantine them. The carrier who started spreading the disease may not have been aware as there are some cases where symptoms are not evident, or take a longer time to show. But during that time, they are a threat to others as the virus continues to spread through close contact.

Traffic jam near Juru today.

Imagine if there is no restriction on travel, some people who are infected will carry the disease back to their hometowns or kampungs which have so far been lucky not to have any cases and start a ‘cluster’. The whole area will have to be quarantined, causing inconvenience to the residents, and if there are very old people, there is a high risk of them getting seriously ill and even dying.

In one case, a pregnant woman travelled across state borders Kuala Lumpur to Kelantan because she wanted to give birth in the state. She lives in Ampang, which is a ‘red zone’, and was unaware she was infected. She carried the virus to Kelantan which did not have an active COVID-19 case since the end of April. As a result, not only must she be quarantined but everyone she came in contact with has been at risk of also being infected.

Netizens who have seen pictures of the jams on the highways have posted angry responses at what they consider as ‘selfish acts’. It is gratifying to know that many Malaysians understand the seriousness of the matter and why the prohibition is necessary but there are still many who seem to refuse to obey the laws and be a threat to others.