Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. (Hari), the official distributor of Hyundai vehicles in the Philippines, registered a growth of 8 percent in overall sales from January to November, with 20,491 units sold compared to the 18,922 units sold in the same period last year.
In the same period, the passenger car (PC) segment sustained its strong performance with a 27-percent rise to 12,631 units sold versus the 9,913 units sold in January-November 2011. The progress in the PC segment was mainly attributed to the EON, Accent and Elantra models.
Sales for the month of November alone declined by 25 percent with 1,673 units from the 2,217 units sold in November last year. Although the EON, i10 and Genesis Coupe models posted positive growth, delayed arrival of other models, especially in the light commercial vehicle (LCV) segment, slowed total sales for the said month.
The Philippine economy beat most expectations by registering a 7.1-percent gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the third quarter of 2012, the fastest pace in two years. The country’s strong economic performance was mainly attributed to the 8.1-percent expansion in industry and 7-percent growth in the service sectors.
In addition, strong consumer confidence has translated to a 6.2-percent growth in household consumption while government efforts to pump up the economy have resulted in a 12-percent growth in government expenditure.
GDP growth has surpassed the 2012 target of 5-6 percent by registering an average of 6.5 percent over the past three quarters of 2012. The buildup of holiday and election spending, stable inflation environment, low interest rates, and steady inflow of overseas Filipino remittances should sustain the economy’s growth momentum moving into the final month of 2012.