Gaikindo Confident About Competing with Malaysia in New Car Sales

So, Indonesia still maintains its position as the automotive king in ASEAN. However, manufacturers must not be complacent and must work hard to boost sales in the remainder of 2025.

More Than Just a Weakening of Purchasing Power

On the other hand, the weakening of new car sales in Indonesia in the second quarter of 2025 was not solely caused by the weakening of purchasing power.

"What we are witnessing is not just an ordinary domestic sales trend. This is an erosion of the fundamental competitiveness of the Indonesian automotive industry at the ASEAN regional level," said Yannes Martinus Pasaribu, an automotive expert and academic from the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), to KatadataOTO on a separate occasion.

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He revealed that for a long time, Indonesia has relied too heavily on its massive domestic market.

However, it turns out this could not last long. Especially when its main foundation, the middle class in the country, is shaken.

Then, domestic manufacturers are still busy with price wars. A very unhealthy competition.

Not to mention the low commitment of new manufacturers to invest money or capital in Indonesia.

"It could be that we have been negligent in building long-term industrial resilience," Yannes added.

With all the facts above, it is not surprising that new car sales in Indonesia continue to decline from time to time.