Decrease in Motorcycle Market
According to statistics from the Vietnam Association of Motorcycle Manufacturers (VAMM) in the first quarter of 2024, the total sales of motorcycles by VAMM members including Honda, Piaggio, Suzuki, SYM, and Yamaha reached 603,745 units, a decrease of 4.88% compared to the same period last year and a decrease of 11.5% compared to the previous quarter. Among these members, only Honda disclosed detailed sales figures. In March 2024, Honda Vietnam sold a total of 13,416 units of various types, an 11.4% increase from the previous month. As a result, the total sales for the entire fiscal year 2024 from April 2023 to March 2024 reached 2,051,194 units, a 12.2% decrease from the previous year.
In the fiscal year 2024, Honda accounted for 82.5% of the motorcycle market share in Vietnam within the VAMM group, an increase of 1.6% from the previous year. Although still leading the market, Honda's sales have also declined compared to previous years. Comparing the past 5 years, motorcycle sales have been gradually decreasing. Specifically, in 2019, there were 3.25 million motorcycles sold, which decreased to 2.71 million in 2020, 2.49 million in 2021, increased back to 3 million in 2022 due to a surge in demand after the pandemic. However, in 2023, this number decreased to 2.51 million, a 16.21% decrease from the previous year. VAMM previously noted that the Vietnamese motorcycle market had entered a saturation phase with a shift from manual motorcycles to scooters. Scooters now hold a 45% market share and are expected to grow significantly in the future.
The Shift to Electric Motorcycles
While the traditional motorcycle market in Vietnam has reached saturation, the electric motorcycle market is experiencing strong growth. According to the assessment by the motorcycle data company Dater, Vinfast, Pega, and Yadea are currently the top three electric motorcycle brands in Vietnam, contributing significantly to driving this trend. In the fourth quarter of 2023, Vinfast delivered 24,309 electric motorcycles to customers, a 48% increase from the same period last year. Throughout 2023, Vinfast sold a total of 72,469 electric motorcycles, accounting for nearly 3% of the total motorcycle market, demonstrating the huge potential of this segment.
Additionally, according to statistics from TikTok Vietnam, Vinfast electric motorcycles are among the fastest-growing products on this e-commerce platform, indicating a high level of consumer interest in this line of products. On average, Vietnam has 70,000 to 80,000 livestream selling sessions per day on various platforms, and the presence of electric motorcycles in these streams is considered a phenomenon. Apart from Vinfast, the world's largest electric motorcycle manufacturer Yadea from China also sees Vietnam as a key market. Yadea has invested $100 million in a factory in Bac Giang, five times larger than the previous factory, with a production capacity of over 2 million motorcycles per year.
In addition to serving the domestic market, Yadea allocates 30% of its production for export to Southeast Asian countries such as the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, and Laos. With the significant potential of the electric motorcycle market, traditional motorcycle brands like Honda, Yamaha, SYM, Piaggio, and Suzuki are gradually shifting their focus to invest in this sector, with some already introducing new products to enter the market. Furthermore, many other electric motorcycle brands are emerging as private enterprises in Vietnam import.
According to some electric motorcycle dealers in Hanoi, the business situation remains stable, with the main customers being students. According to media sources, Vietnam is a country where motorcycles dominate the roads, driving the rapid development of the electric motorcycle industry. Electric motorcycle sales in Vietnam have increased by about 30 to 35% in recent years, making Vietnam the largest market in Southeast Asia and the second largest in the world after China. According to statistics from motorcycle.com, with the impact of rising fuel prices and increasing environmental concerns, electric motorcycle sales are expected to surpass gasoline motorcycles in the near future.
Data from Vero also shows a 71% annual increase in searches for electric motorcycles from 2019 to 2023, indicating a shift towards electric vehicles by consumers. Experts predict that the electric motorcycle market will continue to expand its market share due to government emission reduction strategies and the decline of the traditional motorcycle market. However, there are still many challenges as some traditional motorcycle segments are slow to transition due to the significant revenue from gasoline sales. Previously, the Vietnamese electric motorcycle market was dominated by small-scale imported electric motorcycles of unknown origin and brand, which were often low-quality and cheap, attracting a portion of users.
However, in the past 2 to 3 years, this trend has changed, with Vietnamese consumers increasingly focusing on quality and brand reputation rather than price. They tend to choose electric motorcycles produced by reputable and large companies. This shift is not only seen in domestic companies like Vinfast, Select Model, or Dat Bike but also in the investment and competition of leading global electric motorcycle brands. The electric motorcycle market share in Vietnam has increased from a modest 5.4% in 2019 to 10% in 2021, and this number is predicted to continue to rise significantly in the coming years, possibly reaching 20 to 25% by 2025.
In 2020, there were only seven domestic electric motorcycle brands producing and assembling in Vietnam, but by 2022, this number had increased to 15 brands. These include Yadea, Vinfast, Pega, which were already present, as well as new brands like Selex, Evco, Sparta, introducing many unique electric motorcycle products with modern design and technology to the market, bringing a new breeze to the Vietnamese electric motorcycle industry.
Vinfast Quietly Ascends to the Throne
Currently, Vinfast leads the electric motorcycle market in Vietnam with over a dozen diverse electric motorcycle models available. The most popular models include Felix, Clara, Impass. Recently, Vinfast has also introduced unique electric bicycle models suitable for various customer segments. Besides Vinfast, other electric motorcycle brands like Pega and Yadea have also experienced strong growth in recent times, although these two brands have not disclosed specific sales figures. According to Motorcycle Stater's assessment, Pega and Yadea are among the top-selling brands after Vinfast.
As the most advanced automotive and electric motorcycle manufacturing plant in Southeast Asia in Cat Hai, Hai Phong, Vinfast has continuously launched new electric motorcycle models with beautiful design and advanced technology. In particular, the six new-generation electric motorcycle models recently introduced by Vinfast, such as Evo 200 Lite, Evo 200 Felix S, Clara S 2022, Vento S, and Theon S, have created a frenzy with modern design, new battery technology, environmentally friendly features, and impressive performance. According to an automotive and motorcycle expert in an investment newspaper, with advantages in battery technology and good cost control, Vinfast has a great opportunity to become a leading electric motorcycle manufacturer in the mid-range and mainstream scooter segment in the near future.
According to motorcycle data company Dator, Vinfast has risen to the top of the electric motorcycle market in Vietnam since 2020, with a market share of 43.4% of total sales. In 2022, amidst the intense competition among domestic electric motorcycle brands, Vinfast continued to assert its leading position by continuously introducing new electric motorcycle models and achieving record sales. Specifically, mid-range electric motorcycle models like Evo 200, Felix S, and high-end models like Clara S 2022 have received significant consumer interest, consistently achieving high order volumes after launch. Thanks to impressive growth in electric motorcycle sales, Vinfast's revenue in 2022 also recorded a huge figure, with electric motorcycle sales alone increasing by 33.2% in the first 9 months compared to the same period in 2021, while the overall motorcycle market is still slowly recovering from the pandemic.
Notably, the Evo 200 model received 18,000 pre-orders with deposits within 48 hours of its launch, equivalent to 40% of the total sales of the best-selling gasoline scooters in the mainstream segment in August 2022. This achievement has surprised many and propelled the electric revolution in the Vietnamese motorcycle market. According to Vinfast's report in the second quarter of 2023, the company sold a total of 10,182 two-wheeled electric vehicles, a 4% increase from the 9,757 units in the first quarter. In the third quarter of 2023, Vinfast's electric motorcycle sales continued to surge to 28,220 units, a 177% increase from the second quarter and a 113% increase from the same period last year.
Although there was a slight decrease compared to the third quarter, the number of electric motorcycles delivered to customers in the fourth quarter still showed impressive growth, reaching a 48% increase from the same period in 2022. As a result, the total number of Vinfast electric motorcycles sold in 2023 exceeded 72,400 units. Moving into the first quarter of 2024, Vinfast only sold 6,632 electric motorcycles. However, this number still indicates that electric motorcycles are gradually asserting their position in the Vietnamese motorcycle market, although they are still modest compared to traditional gasoline-powered motorcycles.