Vietnam is expected to manufacture 200,000 automobiles and 4 million motorbikes in 2015, marking respective yearly rises of 4.4 percent and 2 percent during the 2011-2015 period, according to the Heavy Industry Department of the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Though the sales of motorbikes slowed down, the automobile market saw signs of rebound, especially during the late 2014 compared to the same period of 2012 and 2013, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Cam Tu told a conference to review the ministry’s 2014 performance and launch its tasks for 2015.

Truong Thanh Hoai, head of the Heavy Industry Department attributed the significant car sales to a 2 percent cut in registration fee from 12 percent, adding that trucks assembled at home are gaining popularity, especially light-weight category.

Last year, 3.3 million cars and 128,000 motorbikes were manufactured, the ministry reported.

About two million cars and 37 million motorcycles are on the roads of Vietnam, which has a population of more than 90 million.-VNA