Vehicle sales jumped 27% in January-June

The Philippine automotive industry has sustained its stellar growth performance in the first six months of the year, as it saw vehicle sales rising by 27 percent to 167,481 units, compared to the 131,465 units sold in the same period in 2015.

For June alone, vehicle sales rose by 36.4 percent to 32,993 units, according to joint data from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (Campi) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA).

“There has been a sustained growth since the start of the year. We remain confident in achieving our initial target for the year with continued supply of vehicles, attractive promos and affordable financing scheme, among others,” Campi president Rommel Gutierrez said in a statement issued Tuesday.

According to Campi, both the passenger car and commercial vehicle segments posted increases in sales in the first half of 2016, compared to year ago figures.

Sales of passenger cars grew by 21.5 percent to 11,951 units in June. This brought total sales from the January to June to 62,560 units, up 18.5 percent from 52,778 units a year ago.

The commercial vehicles segment saw growth of 46.7 percent in June to 21,042 units. This pushed the segment’s sales up by 33.3 percent to 104,921 units in the first half.

According to Campi, all categories under the CV segment performed well. The biggest jump was posted by Category 5 (heavy duty trucks and buses), which saw a 91 percent surge in sales to 193 units in June.

The strong demand for heavy duty vehicles can be attributed to ongoing infrastructure developments.

Other categories that posted sales increases were: Category 1 (Asian Utility Vehicles or AUV), up 41.3 percent to 6,185 units; Category 2 (Light Commercial Vehicles or LCV), 49 percent o 13,689 units; Category 3 (light trucks), 41.5 percent to 661 units, and Category 4 (trucks and buses), up 48 percent to 314 units.

As of the end of June, Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. remained the biggest automotive player in the country, accounting for 43.4 percent of the market, posting sales of 72,642 units. It was followed by Mitsubishi Motor Philippines Corp., which grabbed an 18.1 percent market share (30,372 units); Ford Motor Philippines, with a 10 percent share (16,769 units); Isuzu Philippines Corp., 7.9 percent share (13,258 units), and Honda Cars Philippines, 6.7 percent market share (11,179 units).