The local automotive industry continued to enjoy robust sales in May due to consumers' high appetite for passenger cars and commercial vehicles.
Data from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers in the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) showed sales last month reached 13,995 units, bringing the total car sales from January to May to 66,958 units. The sales figure for the first five months of the year is 36.6 percent higher than the sales booked in the same period last year.
Passenger car sales grew 29.8 percent while commercial vehicle sales ballooned by 40.5 percent in the past five months.
"The stronger-than-expected growth of over 40 percent for the commercial vehicle segment resulted in shortage of supply for some models," CAMPI president Elizabeth Lee said. "Supply is trying to keep up with the demand."
Bulk of the sales on the commercial vehicle side came from the segment for pickup trucks, sport-utility vehicles (SUV) and vans. Lee noted, however, that there was a shortage of supply for select light commercial vehicles resulting in the month-on-month decline for SUV and Asian utility vehicle sales.
"We continue to expect relatively robust sales for the year with supply trying to keep up with the rising demand," Lee added.
Toyota Motor Philippines continued to lord over the industry with total sales reaching 21,397 units in the first five months of the year. It is followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines with 12,891 units and Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. with 7,803 units.
| Philippine car sales as of May 2010 | |||||
| YTD ranking | Car company | January to May 2010 | January to May 2009 | May 2010 | May 2009 |
| 13 | Asian Carmakers Corp. (BMW) | 224 | 201 | 33 | 33 |
| 12 | CATS Motors | 335 | Data unavailable | 82 | Data unavailable |
| 8 | Columbian Autocar Corp. | 2,331 | 1,270 | 452 | 212 |
| 20 | Columbian Motors Corp. | 2 | 102 | 0 | 27 |
| 18 | Dreamco | 60 | 23 | 5 | 5 |
| 16 | Focus Ventures, Inc. | 128 | Data unavailable | 4 | Data unavailable |
| 6 | Ford Motor Co. Philippines, Inc. (+Mazda) | 3,693 | 2,610 | 744 | 506 |
| 11 | The Covenant Car Company (Chevrolet) | 730 | 648 | 150 | 135 |
| 4 | Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. | 7,373 | 7,164 | 1,483 | 1,288 |
| 3 | Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. | 7,803 | 4,001 | 1,551 | 883 |
| 5 | Isuzu Philippines Corp. | 4,096 | 3,250 | 760 | 699 |
| 19 | MAN Automotive Concessionaires Corp. | 36 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. | 12,891 | 8,750 | 2,703 | 2,005 |
| 10 | Nissan Motor Philippines, Inc. | 1,079 | 719 | 206 | 176 |
| 15 | PGA Cars, Inc. (Porsche/Audi) | 190 | 121 | 43 | 22 |
| 14 | Pilipinas Hino, Inc. | 217 | 102 | 49 | 31 |
| 17 | Scandinavian Motors Corp. (Volvo) | 121 | 105 | 23 | 24 |
| 9 | Suzuki Philippines, Inc. | 1,562 | 915 | 296 | 242 |
| 1 | Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. | 21,397 | 17,080 | 4,826 | 3,779 |
| 7 | Universal Motors Corp. | 2,690 | 1,936 | 584 | 383 |
| Total cars sold | 66,958 | 49,001 | 13,995 | 10,450 | |
| Data source: Joint CAMPI and Truck Manufacturers Association sales report | |||||
