The Vietnam Auto Manufacturers Association (VAMA) said the jump was fuelled by outstanding sales of commercial vehicles, which reached 8,185 units, up 248 percent.

While the passenger car segment saw a 116 percent rise with 2,221 units, multi-purpose vehicles and sport utility vehicles (MPV/SUV) experienced a 119 percent jump with 2,865 units.

On the company’s rankings list, truck and bus manufacturer Vinamotor once again led the line with 3,520 units, accounting for 27 percent of the market share, followed by Toyota and Truong Hai with 2,265 and 2,016 units, respectively, accounting for 17 and 15 percent of the market share.

The overall sales of VAWA members in the first four months of the year climbed to 47,366 units, up 181 percent over the corresponding period last year.

Meanwhile, the country imported some 12,000 complete built unit (CBU) autos in the first quarter of the year, representing a year-on-year increase of 35 percent, according to the General Office of Statistics.

A number of tariff adjustments were made last month as part of a Government drive to reduce traffic congestion by curbing the mass importation of automobiles into the country, and to reduce the trade deficit.

The Ministry of Finance on April 2 raised the import tariff on CBUs from 60 percent to 70 percent and from 70 percent to 83 percent a few days later.

While the import tariff on auto parts and components for local assembly increased by 3-5 percent, the tariff on used cars also doubled this year.

The continuous increase in import tariffs on CBUs is believed to have raised not only the price of imported autos, but also the price of locally-assembled autos.

As a result, while several car importers have raised their sales prices to cope with the new tariffs, Toyota Vietnam last week was the first local car assembler to announce a price hike for its fleet, ranging from US$100 to US$700, depending on the models.