It expects production to stabilise by mid-2021 with the arrival of vaccines against Covid-19.
"We have an exciting series of improved products in the pipeline while the X50 will now be able to establish its standing in the market by benefitting from a full year of sales," said Proton Edar CEO Roslan Abdullah.
"There will undoubtedly be more challenges ahead until the world is able to control the spread of the virus but we are aware this is now the new norm for doing business and the onus is on us to innovate our operations to better serve our customers.”
He said Proton's order book remains healthy with orders carried over from the end of last year. While customer visits to showrooms had dropped as a result of the Movement Control Order, Proton's ability to receive bookings online had helped to boost sales, he said.
He also said the company is working hard for supply to catch up to demand.
The Saga continues to lead Proton's January 2021 sales. With 2,583 units delivered it was the second most popular A-segment sedan in the country.
Proton is struggling to keep up with demand for its latest model, the X50.
Proton finished the month ranked second by delivering 5,964 units. This represents a sales decrease of 29.9% compared to January 2020. Market share is estimated at 18.5%, about 1.0% less compared to the same period last year. The overall figures though are a reflection of supply not being able to meet demand rather than a reduction in bookings.
Malaysia’s automotive sales for January is forecast to be slightly above 32,000 units, corresponding with a major drop in volume for most major players.
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