Chinese-Thai joint venture SAIC Motor-CP, manufacturer of cars under the MG brand, and MG Sales (Thailand) have decided to suspend the production of pickups in Thailand until the sluggish domestic car market returns to normal.
MG Sales (Thailand) did not disclose how many diesel-powered pickups the company produces annually, noting only that they represent a small proportion of locally produced vehicles.
"Pickups are not our main products at this moment, so we are not severely affected by the production halt," said Pongsak Lertruedeewattanavong, vice-president of MG Sales (Thailand).
"We will come back to produce pickups when the market recovers."
The Thai car market has been sluggish since 2023 when prospective buyers began to experience rejections when applying for auto loans.
Banks and car financing companies have tightened lending criteria for fear of non-performing loans in the auto sector as the country is struggling to deal with the high level of household debt and weak consumer purchasing power.
Mr Pongsak expects the market situation to remain unchanged this year, with people's difficulties in accessing car loans being a major cause of the decline in sales.
Domestic car sales should stand at 550,000-570,000 units, including electric vehicles (EVs).
According to the Federation of Thai Industries, total car sales in the country tallied 572,675 in 2024, a year-on-year decrease of 26.1% from 2023, with pure pickup sales plunging by 38.3% to 163,347 units.
SAIC Motor-CP built a auto manufacturing facility, spanning 437 rai in Chon Buri, with annual production capacity of 100,000 vehicles.
The company is selling vehicles both domestically and overseas and aims to use Thailand as a base from which to export vehicles to countries worldwide.
MG cars are usually shipped to Asean countries, so the company believes it should not be affected by US President Donald Trump's auto tariff policy, said Mr Pongsak.
In Thailand, MG sold 17,000 EVs and internal combustion engine-powered cars last year, with EVs representing 50% of total sales.
It plans to sell 20,000 units this year, increasing its market share to 5% from 3%.
"We will continue to launch new EV models and aim to have EVs make up 60% of sales this year," said Mr Pongsak.
The company will launch the new MG IM6 electric sports utility vehicle at Bangkok International Motor Show, which is scheduled to be held from March 26 to April 6.