Lexus, the luxury division of Toyota, is hoping the recovery in the auto market will help the division increase sales 22 per cent this year.

Last year, Lexus sales amounted to 270 units, down from 362 in 2008. The company expects to sell 330 units this year.

Automobile sales in Thailand recovered significantly in the first two months of the year, when 103,735 vehicles were sold, up 56 per cent year on year.

Toyota Motor Thailand (TMT) senior vice president Wichien Emprasertsuk said total auto sales in Thailand could reach 650,000 units this year, up from an earlier company forecast of 610,000.

"The economy is improving, and there's no sudden fuel-price surge to create a shock, while alternative fuel prices are supported by the government. Crop prices are up now, and there the export sector had improved," he said.

Sitachai Jeeratunyasakul, vice president and head of the Thai Lexus division, said growth for the car would come from new models later this year, one with a smaller engine choice for an existing model during the midyear period and a completely new hybrid model at year-end.

The Japan-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement (JTEPA) is also entering its final year, with the final 5 per cent of a 20-per-cent reduction in import duty set to take effect.

The reduction is offered for Japanese-built vehicles with engine sizes above 3,000cc.

As a result of Jtepa, prices of Lexus vehicles sold in Thailand will be lowered by Bt150,000 to Bt320,000, depending on the model.

Wichien said Toyota was planning to raise production of the Corolla Altis Advanced CNG model, due to higher-than-expected demand.

Sales are amounting to 800-900 units a month, with the automatic version making up 500-600 units and the manual version 200-300 units.

"At present, there's a two-month backlog for the Corolla Altis CNG, due to the high demand for the E Automatic model, which offers fuel savings of as much as Bt10,000 a month for long commuters," Wichien said, adding that production would be raised to about 800 units a month.