PH vehicle production hit peak 2024 growth in August

Local vehicle production revved up by more than a third in August, the highest monthly growth rate so far this year, on the back of robust demand.

Data released on Tuesday by the Asean Automotive Federation (AAF), an umbrella group of industry associations from member-economies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), showed that the Philippines produced 10,941 new vehicles during the month.

This is equivalent to a 34.7- percent growth compared to the 8,125 vehicle units manufactured during the same month in 2023.

READ: PH vehicle production posts highest monthly growth in August

The latest posting brought the country’s year-to-date output to 86,585 units, marking a 17.3-percent growth compared to the 73,789 units produced in the same eight-month period last year.

Compared to other Asean countries with vehicle manufacturing hubs, the Philippines placed second in terms of volume growth, next to Myanmar.

Myanmar recorded a 48.7- percent production growth rate, but has the lowest manufacturing volume at 345 units during the month.

Thailand, the biggest producer with an output of 119,680 units during the month, suffered a 20.6- percent decline, the eighth straight month that output declined by double-digits.

Indonesia, the next biggest producer at 107,263 units, recorded a shallower decline of 14.6 percent.

Meanwhile, Malaysia saw its production grow by 8.9 percent to 73,966 units while Vietnam saw its own drop by 7.4 percent to 13,653 units.

The six Asean economies produced a total of 325,848 units in August, resulting in a 11.3 percent decline.

From January to August, 2,509,405 vehicle units were produced by these countries, which is 12 percent lower compared with the 2,853,109 manufactured in the same time frame in 2023.

Motorcycle, scooter production

The Philippines’ monthly production of motorcycles and scooters grew two-fold in August, reaching 115,974 units and posting a growth rate of 101.3 percent.

This brought the country’s production of these two-wheeled vehicles during the eight-month period to 893,293, marking a 5.2 percent growth.

Indonesia, the biggest producer among the four countries tracked by the AAF, had its output grow by 6.9 percent to 630,601 units.

Thailand, the next largest manufacturer, had its output cut by 15.8 percent to 144,244 units, while Malaysia had its own grow by 3.3 percent to 53,323 units.

In total, the four countries produced a total 944,142 units during the month, which is equivalent to an 8.5 percent expansion.

Despite posting growth in August, the combined year-to-date production still resulted in a 1 percent decline as output fell to 7,240,759 units from 7,312,195 units. INQ