Passenger cars led the sales growth from January to March, data from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers in the Philippines (CAMPI) showed.
Overall sales in the first quarter reached 36,293 units, up 8.2 percent from the same period in 2010. Passenger car sales were up 11.3 percent in the first three months of the year, while commercial vehicle sales rose 6.7 percent.
Sales in March alone stood at 13,775, 12.4 percent higher than the sales posted in the same month last year and 20.1 percent higher than that made in February 2011.
"The singular month of March showed robust increase in sales of over 20 percent in February, setting a positive signal and a good start of the year," CAMPI president Elizabeth Lee said.
Lee added that the positive growth will continue if the effect of the double disaster that hit Japan on March 11, which has caused temporary stoppage in certain assembly and parts plants there, will be minimized.
She also noted that while some Japanese manufacturers are already back in operation, others are still working on the resumption of production.
"Logistics are hampered, which may result in delays in the delivery of parts and vehicles. The effect of these on the Philippine local assembly is in the supply of parts, which may either be part of the CKD pack or for regular parts purchases," Lee said.
Market dominance
Toyota remains to be the Filipinos' top brand of choice with 5,307 units of passenger cars and 8,538 units of commercial vehicles sold in the first quarter.
Following Toyota's reign in the passenger-car market are Honda with 3,307 units and Ford with 1,468 units.
In the commercial vehicle arena, Toyota's lead is followed by Mitsubishi with 7,668 units and Isuzu with 2,422 units.
CAMPI's data do not include sales of non-members like Hyundai Asia Resources, The Covenant Car Company (Chevrolet), Scandinavian Motors (Volvo), and Motor Image Pilipinas (Subaru).
| YTD ranking | Car company | January to March 2011 | January to March 2010 | March 2011 | March 2010 |
| 1 | Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation | 13,845 | 12,341 | 5,407 | 4,300 |
| 2 | Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation | 8,143 | 7,184 | 3,155 | 2,568 |
| 3 | Honda Cars Philippines Inc. | 3,695 | 4,500 | 1,335 | 1,676 |
| 4 | Ford Motor Co. and Mazda | 3,230 | 1,926 | 1,222 | 783 |
| 5 | Isuzu Philippines Corporation | 2,422 | 2,405 | 977 | 1,096 |
| 6 | Universal Motors Corporation | 1,431 | 1,452 | 553 | 505 |
| 7 | Columbian Autocar Corporation | 1,002 | 1,434 | 304 | 462 |
| 8 | Suzuki Philippines Inc. | 867 | 949 | 301 | 354 |
| 9 | Nissan Motors Philippines Inc. | 821 | 693 | 280 | 243 |
| 10 | CATS Motors | 267 | 205 | 103 | 75 |
| 11 | Pilipinas Hino Inc. | 202 | 129 | 25 | 57 |
| 12 | Asian Carmakers Corp. | 164 | 135 | 61 | 53 |
| 13 | PGA Cars Inc. | 109 | 103 | 25 | 32 |
| 14 | Dreamco | 45 | 44 | 13 | 14 |
| 15 | MAN Automotive Concessionaires Corporation | 28 | 36 | 6 | 36 |
| 16 | Columbian Motors Corporation | 22 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Source: Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers in the Philippines and Truck Manufacturers' Association | |||||
