KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 30 — Chery Malaysia has handed over its first completely knocked down (CKD) Omoda 5 and Tiggo 8 Pro sports utility vehicles (SUV) to its customers.

The handover ceremony was held in the Inokom CKD plant in Kulim Kedah in the presence of Inokom Corporation managing director Sui Keng Huat and Chery Malaysia plant operation director Xu Jin Zhong.

The company said in a statement that the remarkable achievement underscores its commitment to localise CKD manufacturing to provide the best driving experience to the customers.

"As we move forward, Chery Malaysia is committed to further enhancing our CKD manufacturing capabilities, investing in cutting-edge technology and more collaborations with local suppliers to support the automotive ecosystem in Malaysia.

"This endeavour not only strengthens our position as a leader in the automotive industry but also contributes to the economic development of the region.”

According to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), the country’s auto exports in the first quarter of 2023 exceeded 1.07 million vehicles, surpassing Japan and becoming the world's largest auto exporter.

Data show that Chery Group had a cumulative sales volume of 741,400 vehicles in H1 2023, which is a year-on-year increase of 56 per cent.

The company said the milestone not only set a new record high sales in the history of semi-annual but also exceeded 100,000 vehicles in a single month for 13 consecutive months, with its growth rate ranked second in the industry.

Among them, the cumulative sales volume of the Chery brand in the first half of the year was 539,400, a year-on-year increase of 50.9 per cent.