Vehicle sales rise 15% in Sept

MANILA, Philippines - Sales of local vehicle assemblers continued to rise in September from a year ago supported by the strong demand for passenger cars (PC) and     commercial vehicles (CV).         

The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) reported yesterday that combined sales of the group and the Truck Manufacturers Association, Inc. (TMA) reached 14,764 units, 15 percent higher than the 12,857 units sold in the same period last year.         

Compared to CAMPI sales in August which reached 13,700 units, the latest result is up by eight percent.         

The increase in total sales was seen as both PC and CV sales continued to grow.         

PC sales grew by almost 34 percent to 5,136 units in September  compared to just 3,844 units in the same month last year.          

CV sales went up by seven percent to 9,628 units in September from  9,013 units in the previous year.         

CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said September starts the four “Ber” months which ushers in the country’s long holiday buying season.         

This buying season, is seen to peak in December.         

“To support this buying trend, the past month saw not just several full new model introductions, but new brand launches as well,” Gutierrez said.              

For the January to September period, combined sales of the CAMPI and  TMA rose 18 percent to 131,381 units from the 111,582 units in the  comparable period a year ago.         

PC sales as of end-September posted a 29 percent increase to 43,359     units from 33,589 units last year.         

CV sales also went up 13 percent to 88,022 units in the nine-month  period compared to the previous year’s 77,993 units.         

CAMPI’s data showed that Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. remained the market leader for the nine-month period with its 41 percent share.         

This was followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. which had a 24 percent share and Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. with its eight percent share.         

For the rest of the year, Gutierrez said consumers could expect bigger promotion packages as companies strive not only to meet, but even  exceed their sales targets.