BUOYANT consumer confidence has prompted local car dealers to boost forecasts in sales, a move analysts say is symptomatic of a wider recovery in the retail market.
At the beginning of the year, the Motor Traders' Association (MTA) expected passenger car sales to rise 5 per cent from the current annual sales of 25,000.
This week, the association said it had increased its forecast to 20 per cent - a rise that would take car sales to more than 30,000 a year for the first time since 1994.
MTA chairman Chow Bing-hung said a number of new models helped boost the market, but stressed that a smooth handover and consumer sentiment had driven demand.
'I think it is a matter of confidence,' Mr Chow said.
'Since the transfer has been so smooth, the stock market seems to have been quite encouraging and the general economy has grown.