MANILA, Philippines — Vehicle sales in the country continued to post double-digit growth in the 10 months of the year, according to data from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA).
In a joint report released yesterday, CAMPI-TMA said year-to-date new motor vehicle sales increased by 30.9 percent to 280,300 units.
Based on CAMPI data, the industry posted double-digit growth for eight consecutive months on a year-on-year basis.
On a month-on-month basis, CAMPI-TMA sales increased by 42.4 percent in October to 32,146 units from 22,581 units last year.
This was led by commercial vehicle sales, which increased by 59.5 percent to 23,852 units.
Similarly, passenger vehicle sales also rose by 8.8 percent to 8,294 units.
“The continued double-digit growth recorded anew in October is boosting optimism for the automotive industry, further accelerating full recovery this year from the pandemic disruptions,”CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said.
“Sustaining this growth trend in the remaining months of the year gives us confidence that the industry will be able to emerge strong, exceeding its forecast speaking from the current business-as-usual standpoint,”he said.
From January to October, CAMPI-TMA’s commercial car sales grew by 45.6 percent percent to 211,948 units.
In contrast, passenger vehicle sales declined by 0.4 percent to 68,352 units.
Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. remained the market leader as of the end of September, with a 50.1 percent share.
Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. placed second with a 14.51 percent share, while Ford Motor Co. Phils. had a 6.65 percent share.
Gutierrez earlier said the automotive industry was on track to meet its 336,000 unit sales target this year.
He explained that the industry reached monthly sales of above 30,000 units – a pre-pandemic monthly performance level last recorded in 2019.
Pre-pandemic annual sales were at the 400,000-plus units level.
“It’s really a good sign. We think it’s just a matter of time that maybe next year we will be able to reach pre-pandemic levels,” Gutierrez said.