Foreign cars flood in, market prepares for 'big wave' during Tet

In just the first 8 months of 2025, more than 137,000 cars worth 3.02 billion USD were imported to Vietnam. Businesses compete to offer incentives, Chinese cars dominate, signaling fierce competition at the end of the year.

Chinese car brands are penetrating strongly, covering the market with a series of new products in the coming time - Photo: CONG TRUNG

Spending 3 billion USD to import cars

According to statistics from the Customs Department, Ministry of Finance , Vietnam imported more than 137,000 complete cars of all kinds with a total value of 3.02 billion USD in the first 8 months of the year, an increase of 836 million USD over the same period last year and reaching the highest level ever.

In the import structure, cars with less than 9 seats continue to account for a large proportion, reaching more than 104,000 units, an increase of nearly 20% over the same period last year; of which, transport cars reached nearly 18,000 units, an increase of nearly 96% over the same period last year.

In August 2025 alone, the number of imported complete cars of all kinds reached more than 16,200 units with a value of 363 million USD.

Imported cars are mainly from three main markets: Indonesia, Thailand and China, accounting for 94% of the total number of cars imported to Vietnam.

In the group of auto parts and components, the import value in the first 8 months of 2025 reached 3.61 billion USD, an increase of 1.52 billion USD over the same period last year. In August 2025 alone, auto parts and components of all kinds were imported to Vietnam by enterprises with a value of 452 million USD.

According to many car dealers in Ho Chi Minh City, the number of imported cars is expected to increase sharply in the last months of the year, when the demand for buying cars for the 2026 Tet holiday is expected to explode.

The market is bustling with new car models constantly being launched.

Notably, Chinese car brands are penetrating strongly, covering the market with a series of new products but hardly announce sales figures.

Dealers predict that the number of imported cars will increase sharply in the last months of the year, when the demand for buying cars for the 2026 Tet holiday is expected to explode - Photo: CONG TRUNG

Since the beginning of the year, more than half of the new car models launched belong to Chinese brands, from Geely with Coolray, EX5, Monjaro, Lynk & Co 01 Hyper, to BYD with Sealion 6, Sealion 8, Atto 2...

Not only importing, some companies also plan to build assembly plants in Vietnam to proactively source supplies and reduce costs.

Geely joined hands with businessman Vu Dinh Do's Tasco Group to invest in a joint venture factory in Hung Yen with a capital of 168 million USD. Meanwhile, Omoda & Jaecoo cooperated with Geleximco to implement a project worth about 20,000 billion VND.

According to an auto expert, these moves show the great ambition of Chinese cars to dominate market share in Vietnam, which is considered one of the fastest growing auto markets in the region.

Competitive car brands, diverse customer choices

Faced with competitive pressure and declining purchasing power due to economic difficulties, car manufacturers in Vietnam have simultaneously launched discount programs, registration fee support, and free accessories.

For example, Honda applies 50% support for City, HR-V, BR-V, CR-V, even raising the registration fee to 100% for the City line.

With a listed price of 458-545 million VND, the above discount is equivalent to a value of 46-54 million VND depending on the version, not including some separate promotions of each dealer.

Thanks to that, Vietnamese customers can own Vios with prices ranging from 412-491 million VND for versions 1.5E MT, 1.5E CVT and 1.5G.

In September, Hyundai Thanh Cong is also applying discounts on a series of car models. However, Palisade and Santa Fe are the D and E-size SUV duo with the highest discounts.

In more detail, the company's flagship D-size SUV, the Santa Fe, is applying a discount and promotion policy with a total value of 125 million VND. Notably, in September, customers who buy the Hyundai Palisade model will save up to 200 million VND...

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/o-to-ngoai-tran-ve-thi-truong-chuan-bi-song-lon-dip-tet-20250927174638943.htm