According to Nikkei Asia , Malaysia recently surpassed Thailand to take the second place, and the growth of the Malaysian market along with the decline of the two markets Indonesia and Thailand shows a big change in the ASEAN auto market.

Nikkei Asia compiled sales data from April to June in five countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam. The data showed that Malaysia's car sales were only 8,134 units behind Indonesia, significantly narrowing the gap of nearly 90,000 units in the January-March 2023 period.

Car sales rose 8% from a year earlier to 184,702 units in the second quarter, led by national brands Perodua and Proton, according to the Malaysian Automotive Association. Malaysia’s economy also grew 5.9% in the second quarter from a year earlier.