Vehicle firms remain hopeful on improved sales

Vehicle manufacturers in the country are reviewing the outlook of the market for this year, noting that the rest of 2018 might not be as bad as the first semester, a top industry group official said.

Dante Santos, vice president of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (Campi), said last week that the industry was doing its annual midyear review.

Santos said that representatives of different car companies were told to give the industry a second look in search for a silver lining.

The marketing team of each brand under Campi and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) will meet next week to discuss this, he said.

“Maybe the parameters of the first semester are not available in the second semester. Maybe it improved,” he said.

Joint data from Campi and TMA showed vehicle sales in the first half dropped 12.5 percent to 171,352 units.