KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 — Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Bhd (Proton) today said its June market share figure has hit 18.1 per cent — its highest since 47 months ago in July 2015.

Proton in a statement said its sales of 7,615 units for June is the second highest figures posted by the company following record-setting sales in May where it sold 10,611 units.

This pushed its year-to-date market share to 14.7 per cent, which the company said is a "big improvement” from its 2018’s 10.8 per cent figure.

Proton X70 continues to be one of Proton’s product stars as for the first half of the year 15,175 units were delivered, making it the cumulative sales leader for the overall SUV segment while also cementing its position as the best-selling premium and executive SUV.

"By achieving a market share of 18.1 per cent in June, Proton continues to show positive sales growth this year despite the tough market conditions following the Hari Raya holidays.

"Our year to date market share currently stands at 14.7 per cent and is a big improvement of our 2018 figure of 10.8 per cent.

"For the second half of the year, we will concentrate on continuing to build our sales and exciting the market further by introducing new and updated models as was promised at the beginning of the year,” said Li Chunrong, Chief Executive Officer of PROTON.

Proton recorded a 23 per cent rise in car sales this year compared to June 2018 helping it finished second in the sales for three consecutive months. It’s contributed to an overall sales growth of 61 per cent for the first six months of 2019.

Sales of the Proton Saga continue to grow with 2,541 units delivered in June. The other models, now updated with intelligent features are performing equally well with bookings for the 2019 Proton Persona, Iriz and Exora increasing by an average of 108, 180 and 135 per cent respectively compared to their pre-\-update booking numbers.