Hyundai posts 10% sales hike

MANILA, Philippines - Despite August being a ghost month, the local distributor of Hyundai vehicles posted a 10-percent year-on-year hike in sales last month supported by the strong demand for passenger cars (PC).

According to Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. (HARI), it sold 2,073 units in August this year, up from the 1,877 units sold in the same month in 2013.

Driving the higher sales in August was the PC segment  which rose 21 percent to achieve sales of 1,526 units this year compared to 1,261 units in the previous year.

Strong demand was seen for the following PC models which posted year-on-year growth in sales for the month: the sub-compact EON (44 percent ), Accent (54 percent) and Genesis Coupe (200 percent).

Meanwhile, sales of the light commercial vehicle (LCV) segmentdeclined 11 percent to 547 units in August this year from 616 units a year earlier.

For the January to August period, HARI’s total sales reached 15,676 units this year, seven percent higher than the 14,713 units sold in the same period a year ago.

PC sales as of end-August posted a 22-percent uptick to 10,833 units this year from last year’s 8,867 units.

The LCV segment’s sales, on the other hand, fell 17 percent to 4,843 units in the January to August period this year from 5,846 units in the previous year.

HARI attributed the weak performance of the LCV segment to supply constraints.

Hyundai vehicles sold here are imported from South Korea.

HARI president and chief executive officer Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo said the firm expects to continue to post positive sales performance for the rest of the year.

 “The Philippine economy’s solid posture in the second quarter and the automotive industry’s upbeat sales track continue to be a confidence booster for Hyundai to step up its efforts in becoming top of mind choice for the discerning Filipino market,” she said.