BAuto records softer quarter despite new launches

PETALING JAYA: Bermaz Auto Bhd (BAuto) believes vehicle sales in the country will continue to be impacted by the influx of Chinese-made vehicles.

The company had, during its second quarter ended Oct 31, 2025 (2Q26), introduced new completely built-up (CBU) models such as the Mazda CX-60, Mazda CX-80 PHEV and the 1.5 High Plus variant of the Mazda3 as an interim measure to address the end of product lifecycles of certain vehicle models in the group.

It said these models have been well-received by consumers, as reflected by the higher sales registered and are expected to contribute positively to its results moving forward.

Releasing its 2Q26 results yesterday, BAuto saw net profit fall 57.4% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM17.2mil, as revenue also slipped 14% to RM556.5mil.

At the same time, net profit for the half-year ended in October plunged 77% y-o-y to RM25.5mil, as turnover decreased by 29.8% to RM1.05bil.

The group attributed the weaker y-o-y results to lower sales volume in domestic operations for certain Mazda and Kia vehicles which are nearing their end of product lifecycles, which was aggravated by the highly competitive market conditions such as the influx of Chinese-made vehicles with their low pricing strategy.

“The decline in group revenue was partly mitigated by the encouraging sales from our CBU models, namely, the XPeng X9 model, the Mazda CX-60 and Mazda3 1.5L, which were available in March 2025, September 2025 and October 2025 respectively,” BAuto said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia.

The softer quarterly and half-yearly revenues have directly led to lower profits, highlighted the group, which are also in addition to the share of losses from its associate companies in 2Q26, compared to the share of profits in 2Q25.

“This was largely due to Kia Malaysia Sdn Bhd, which was negatively impacted by retroactive fees (idle capacity costs) from lower than anticipated CKD, or completely knocked down, production volumes,” BAuto pointed out.

The picture, though, was brighter when compared sequentially against 1Q26, as net profit more than doubled from RM8.3mil, while revenue grew by 13.3% from RM491.3mil.

The group observed that the improved results were primarily down to higher sales volumes recorded for its Mazda domestic operations from the launching of the Mazda CX-60 and Mazda3 1.5L models.

It proposed a dividend of 1.25 sen per share for 2Q26, bringing total dividend declared for the financial year ending 2026 (FY26) so far to two sen per share.

BAuto said although the sales of the aforementioned models will have a positive impact on its financial performance in the coming quarters, the group remains cautious and anticipates its overall performance will continue to be challenging for FY26.