July sales numbers from the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors (AVID) are in, and while the report shows a slight decline for both year-on-year and month-on-month performance, total sales so far in 2021 are a big improvement over 2020’s figures.
Brands under AVID pulled together a sales total of 4,862 units in July 2021, which is 5% down from July 2020’s 5,101 units. It is also 99 units fewer than June 2021’s 4,961 vehicles sold, accounting for a 2% month-on-month contraction. The good news is that the year-to-date total as of July is 35,092 units, which is 43% up on the 24,610 units sold from January to July last year.
Commercial vehicles (CVs) and light commercial vehicles (LCVs) are the biggest sales drivers in 2021. For CVs, the first seven months of the year saw 855 units sold, 852 of which were Hyundai trucks and buses; over the same period last year, CV sales were only 156 units. LCVs, which include pickups and SUVs, account for 25,127 units of AVID’s total tally so far this year. Ford Philippines racked up the highest sales in this segment with 10,343 units, followed by Suzuki Philippines with 7,076 units and Hyundai Asia Resources with 3,177 units.
Finally, while year-to-date passenger-car sales are up 15% this year, in July, the segment saw a 27% year-on-year sales decline with 1,293 units sold last month versus July 2020’s 1,765 units. Suzuki has the highest sales in this segment, accounting for 4,559 units of the total 9,110 units in the first seven months of the year.
The shift to modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) for the remainder of August and the removal of safeguard duties on imported vehicles should help the industry pick up speed for a stronger finish in 2021. “The gradual adaptation of the automotive industry to ‘now normal’ operations is mainly driven by the valuable lessons gathered and learned over the course of the period,” said AVID president Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo. “These lessons fuel our passion for developing new and innovative ways to addressing the needs of the market.”
