Thailand April Car Production Hits Five-Year Low! Totaling 103,794 Units

[CNMO Tech News] May 25, the Thai Federation of Industries released the latest data. Suffering a dual blow from export drag caused by Middle East conflicts and soaring energy prices, the country's April car production fell to a five-year low. Data shows that April Thailand car production totaled 103,794 units, down 0.44% year-on-year, reversing the 2.69% year-on-year growth momentum of March. The car export volume for the month was 60,190 units, sharply down 8.43% year-on-year; while driven by orders from the Bangkok Auto Show, domestic car sales defied the trend to grow 2.54%, reaching 48,394 units.

Toyota Products

CNMO Tech learned that "dual pressure" is the core reason for this sharp production drop. On one hand, the Middle East conflict caused severe logistics obstruction in the Strait of Hormuz, making the automotive export chain destined mainly for the Middle East nearly broken. As one of the three major overseas markets for Thai cars, Thailand exported 200,001 units of cars to the Middle East in 2025, accounting for 21.17%. of its total exports.

On the other hand, sustained high international oil prices pushed up Thailand's local energy and production costs. Facing increasingly intense operational pressure, many automakers were forced to delay production plans. As the largest automobile production base in Southeast Asia, Thailand hosts manufacturing plants of international automakers such as Toyota, Honda, BYD, Great Wall Motors, and others.

Toyota

It is worth noting that Suraphong Paisitapanapan, Chairman of the Automotive Division of the Thai Federation of Industries, stated at a press conference that despite weak April data, the Federation still maintains its forecast of 3% growth in full-year production in 2026 to 1.5 million units, contingent on maritime logistics recovering smoothly in the second half of the year and energy prices stabilizing.