Imported car sales up 8% in March

MANILA, Philippines - Sales of vehicle importers improved in March, posting an eight-percent increase from a year ago due to the positive performance of the light commercial vehicle (LCV) segment.

The Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors, Inc. (AVID) said in a statement yesterday it sold 3,027 units in March against 2,792 units in the same month last year.

The higher sales was driven by the Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) segment which grew by 23 percent with 1,435 units sold compared to 1,170 units last year.

Passenger Car (PC) sales, meanwhile, were down two percent to 1,592 units from 1,622 units a year ago.

Compared to AVID’s sales of 2,338 units in February, the group’s sales rose 29 percent in March.

This as PC sales jumped 53 percent to 1,592 units in March from February, and the LCV segment went up by 11 percent to 1,435 units from the previous month.

The March result brought the group’s first quarter sales to 7,955 units which declined 4.14 percent from the same period last year.

While the AVID’s first quarter sales are still lower than last year’s, the group expects its sales performance to improve in the coming months.

“On the back of positive economic and consumer expectations, AVID’s thrust for innovation shall continue to shine at the forefront of the automotive industry with our line-up of cutting edge vehicles and premium customer service,” AVID president Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo said.

The AVID is projecting a five- to 10-percent increase in sales this year from the 28,400 units sold in 2012.

Last week, the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) and Truck Manufacturers Association, Inc. (TMA) reported that their combined car and truck sales reached 15,110 units in March, 12 percent higher year-on-year.

For the January to March period, combined car sales of CAMPI and TMA reached 41,702 units, up 29 percent from last year.