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Philippines: Vehicle sales pick up speed
MANILA, Philippines — Local car and truck assemblers’ sales continued to rise, posting double-digit growth year-on-year in June and in the first semester, coming from a low base last year when the coronavirus pandemic greatly affected demand for vehicles.
A joint report of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) released yesterday showed combined sales rose 44.8 percent to 22,550 units in June from 15,578 units in the same month last year.
Sales of passenger cars (PCs) jumped 56.7 percent to 7,382 units in June while commercial vehicle (CV) sales climbed 39.6 percent to 15,168 units.
CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said the sales performance shows the industry is coping with the impact of the pandemic.
“This is a respite amid the less buoyant consumer outlook for big-ticket items for the second quarter of this year according to a government survey,” he said.
For the January to June period, CAMPI and TMA’s total sales grew 56 percent to 132,767 units from 85,041 units in the same period last year.
As of end-June, PC sales surged 77.3 percent to 42,406 units while CV sales increased 47.8 percent to 90,361 units in the first half.
Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. remained the top automotive firm in the country with a 48 percent share of the market in the first semester.
In second spot was Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. with a 14.96 percent share, followed by Suzuki Philippines Inc. in third place with 7.52 percent.
Ranking fourth and fifth are Ford Motor Co. Philippines Inc. and Nissan Philippines Inc. with respective shares of 7.42 percent and 6.81 percent.
Gutierrez said “the auto industry continues to adjust to the effects of the pandemic, at the same time striving to strike a balance between its contribution to the economy and keeping its stakeholders safe and healthy during these unprecedented times.”
Source: https://www.philstar.com/business/2021/07/14/2112269/vehicle-sales-pick-speed