HANOI, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam imported completely-built automobiles and components for assembly totaling 304 million U.S. dollars in January, down 17.9 percent on-year.

Specifically, the country imported 1,000 completely-built automobiles valued at 94 million U.S. dollars, posting respective decreases of 86.2 percent and 38 percent, according to its General Statistics Office on Tuesday.

Last year, Vietnam spent over 5.3 billion U.S. dollars importing 94,000 completely-built automobiles and components for assembly. Meanwhile, its total automobile sales were 272,750 units, according to the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association.

Total vehicle sales in Vietnam will increase to over 284,400 units this year, global research company BMI Research forecast recently, explaining that passenger car demand will be driven by reduction in tax rates on vehicles with engine sizes of 2.0 liters or less, and the elimination of tariffs on completely-built units from ASEAN member countries in January.