THE pandemic has put the brakes on most car shows in the Southeast Asian region – except in Thailand, the nation with the reputation of being a global manufacturer of pick-up trucks with about one million units exported annually.

The show must go on … this battle call was especially vibrant in Bangkok last month (March 24) on the occasion of the opening ceremony of the Bangkok International Motor Show, the second straight year that the show has been held there, despite the Covid-19 pandemic.

The organisers, Grand Prix International Public Company Ltd (GPI), announced that sales at this year’s show increased by 51.1% over last year’s show to 27,868 units excluding motorcycles.

“This eventually helps generate more than 30 billion bahts to Thailand’s economy,” said Dr Prachin Eamlumnow, the chairman of GPI.

The number of visitors totalled 1.34 million this year compared to last year’s 1.049 million visitors.

For auto industry journalists and observers, BIMS is a preview of some of the new models that will eventually be launched in the rest of Southeast Asia.

Some 34 car and motorcycle companies took part in the show which was held at the usual venue, the Impact Muong Thong Thani International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

In accordance with this year’s theme “Shaping the Next Chapter”, the organisers installed a special zone called “Smart EV City” featuring mobility lifestyles of the future.

“It has been over a year now that the outbreak of Covid-19 epidemic hit thailand and all over the world.

This has inevitably caused an impact to the entire economy of Thailand including the automotive industry, with the country being a world-class production hub of many renowned brands.

“However, with strong collaboration between the government and private sectors to fight this crisis, the signs of economic recovery are already thete, especially now that the Covid-19 vaccination programme has already been rolled out in Thailand last month,” said Dr Eamlumnow.