MANILA, Philippines—The number of vehicles sold by members of the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors (AVID) dropped 2 percent in the first nine months to 18,090 units, from the 18,400 reported in the same period a year ago.
Data from the group showed that sales in September alone slipped 8 percent to 2,070 units from last year’s 2,205 units, still due to the effects of the crisis in Japan.
The passenger car segment was the only one that bucked the trend, as it registered a 5-percent hike in sales to 9,347 units in the nine months to September, from the 8,906 units seen in the same period last year, Avid reported.
“Avid enters the last quarter of 2011 with optimism hinged on positive indicators that bode well for consumer spending and sales, including increased fiscal spending, steady growth in [overseas Filipino workers’] remittances, and stable to low inflation and interest rates,” the group said in a statement issued Tuesday.
AVID’s top performer continued to be Hyundai Asia Resources Inc., which sold 14,883 units in the January-September period, and 1,612 units in September alone.
At second place was The Covenant Car Co. Inc., distributor of the Chevrolet brand in the country, with sales hitting 1,850 units in the first nine months, and 801 units last month.
Other Avid members included Mini distributor British United Automobiles, Mercedes Benz importer Cats Motors, Porsche and Audi distributor PGA Cars Inc., and Volvo importer Scandinavian Motors Corp.
The bigger Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc., which included auto assemblers and some importers, fared a little worse in terms of growth, with sales declining 3.5 percent in the first three quarters to 105,663 units.
In September alone, the group experienced a 1.3-percent rise in sales to 12,555 units from 12,395 units in the same month last year.
September sales were likewise 8.6 percent better than August’s 11,558 units.
Overall, Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. continued to lead after selling 39,421 units in the first nine months for a 37.3-percent market share.
Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. was a far second, with 24,081 units in sales, and a 22.8-percent share of the market.