Rumors have been swirling for months that the Ayala Group wants to acquire the local distribution rights to Kia. The company confirmed as much back in February. Now it seems that those talks are coming to fruition. Philstar reports that the conglomerate will acquire a 65% stake in Columbian Autocar Corporation (CAC).
Columbian Autocar is not only the country's distributor of Kia vehicles, but also of Mahindra and Peugeot. Founding chairman “Pepito” Alvarez will keep a 35% stake in the company after the acquisition. The deal is expected to conclude within 60 days. This would add to Ayala's growing automotive portfolio, which already includes brands like Honda, Isuzu, Volkswagen, and KTM. It beat out other bidders like Dennis Uy and Salvador “Buddy” Zamora.
Alvarez's new deal is similar to the one he made with San Miguel Corporation for the local rights to BMW. According to Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. figures, CAC's sales went down 29% last year compared to 2016.
What do you guys think about this? Will an Ayala-led Kia mean better models and variants in our market? We're hoping that the new distributors can successfully bring in the Stinger. Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
