The Prohibition Of Gasoline Motors In Vietnam Makes Honda Sales Drop, Vinfast Sells Well

Vinfast electric motorbike. (Photo: Vinfast)

JAKARTA - The plan to ban motorbikes in Vietnam starting next year has a big impact on sales. Like selling Honda motorbikes that immediately fell, on the other hand, VinFast's electric motorbike actually increased.

Honda controls 80 percent of the two-wheeled vehicle market in Vietnam with 2.6 million vehicles sold last year. Now, after the plan to ban the gasoline motorbike, sales plunged nearly 22 percent in August.

The company recorded a double-digit decline in sales compared to the previous year in August and September. On the other hand, this condition actually benefits Vietnamese manufacturer Vinfast, who also sells electric motorcycles.

Sales of electric motorcycles and e-bikes by Vietnamese companies registered with Nasdaq, VinFast (VFS.O), rose 55 percent, or became nearly 70,000 in the second quarter of 2025 from the first quarter.

VinFast reported that it had delivered more than 120,000 electric two-wheeled vehicles in the third quarter, an increase of 73 percent from the previous quarter. Third-quarter shipments surpassed the company's total sales in the first half of this year, according to company data.

VinFast sold 234,536 electric scooters and electric bikes in the first nine months of 2025. The acquisition marked an annual increase of 489 percent. Their number is expected to soar following the ban, according to a consumer survey conducted in September by market research firm Asia Plus.

As reported by Reuters, Saturday, October 25, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh issued a directive prohibiting gasoline-fueled motorcycles from entering the center of the capital starting in mid-2026. This is an effort by the country to reduce high levels of air pollution.

The wider restrictions will be imposed in 2028 and the ban is expected to expand to other regions of the country. In response to this, the Japanese Embassy in Hanoi immediately sent a letter to the Vietnamese authorities.

He stated that the sudden ban could have an impact on employment in the supporting industry. Workers at motorcycle dealers and suppliers of spare parts can be laid off due to the policy.