PH automotive sales rise to 40,271 units in May

Philippine automotive sales picked up in May on the back of improvements in supply and higher consumer demand, data released by local manufacturers on Tuesday showed.

A joint report by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) showed that there were 40,271 units sold in May, up 7.3% compared to the 37,314 units sold in April and 5.5% higher than the 38,177 units sold in May 2023.

“Improvements in supply and good consumer demand, coupled with an increase in the automotive financial scheme and extensive sales activities, helped boost sales on a month-on-month basis,” CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said in a statement.

Sales for May include 10,967 units of passenger cars, 29,304 of commercial vehicles, 6,769 of Asian utility vehicles, 21,572 of light commercial vehicles, 531 of light-duty trucks and buses, 369 of medium-duty trucks and buses, and 63 of heavy-duty trucks and buses.

Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. held a 46.08% market share during the month, followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. with 18.78%, Ford Group Philippines with 6.54%, Nissan Philippines Inc. with 6.17%, and Suzuki Philippines Inc. with 4.26%.

Year-to-date sales were recorded at 187,191 units, reflecting a 12.7% growth from the 166,104 units sold in the same period in 2023.

Last month, Gutierrez said sales could be boosted by the expansion of tariff exemptions on electric vehicles to include hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) and plug-in HEVs, as part of the amendment to Executive Order 12.

CAMPI said in February that it expects sales to grow by 9% to 468,000 units this year from the 429,807 units sold in 2023, and this might increase to 500,000 as the group hosts the Philippine International Motor Show (PIMS) later this year. —VBL, GMA Integrated News