A merry Christmas in the local automotive industry resulted in better overall sales for carmakers in 2009, data from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers in the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) showed.
December sales reached a record of 13,596 units--the highest singular monthly sales in a ten years--seven percent better than sales in the same month last year.
This brought total sales for 2009 to 132,444 units, 6.4 percent higher than the number of vehicles sold in 2008.
"Stronger growth was due to higher replacement rate coupled with stronger than expected growth in OFW remittances and aggressive financing packages--which fueled consumption resulting to higher vehicle sales," CAMPI president Elizabeth H. Lee said.
It may be recalled that the local automotive industry was having a rather lackluster time particularly in the first half of 2009 when consumers held on to their cash amid the financial crisis.
Auto sales started to climb after typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng soaked up vehicles in September and October last year as motorists started buying new cars to replace flooded units. The last-quarter incident also prompted carmakers to offer various schemes to make brand-new car purchases easier on consumers' pockets.
CAMPI data showed more than 60 percent of the vehicles sold in 2009 were light commercial vehicles; 35 percent were passenger cars and another 35 percent were Asian utility vehicles.
Thirteen of the 18 members of CAMPI posted growth in sales. The top-selling brands of the year were Toyota, Mitsubishi, Honda, Hyundai, and Isuzu.
Lee said a possible adjustment of the 2010 forecast is under discussion among CAMPI members after the industry posted better-than-expected sales in 2009.
CAMPI earlier said car sales are expected to grow by four percent this year.
PSBank, one of the country's leading lenders catering to car buyers, expects car sales to rise by as much as ten percent this year.
| Philippine Car Sales as of December 2009 | |||||||
| Ranking | Car Company | December 2009 | December 2008 | Percentage Change | January to December 2009 | January to December 2008 | Percentage Change |
| 12 | Asian Carmakers Corp. (BMW) | 76 | 25 | 204.0% | 626 | 621 | 0.8% |
| 8 | Columbian Autocar Corp. | 343 | 311 | 10.3% | 3,761 | 4,405 | -14.6% |
| 14 | Columbian Motors Corp. | 32 | 32 | 0.0% | 356 | 350 | 1.7% |
| 17 | Dreamco | 16 | 3 | 433.3% | 151 | 48 | 214.6% |
| 6 | Ford Motor Company Phils. Inc. (+Mazda) | 1,017 | 677 | 58.2% | 8,184 | 7,747 | 5.6% |
| 11 | General Motors Automobiles Phils., Inc | 103 | 150 | -31.3% | 1,312 | 2,399 | -45.3% |
| 3 | Honda Cars Philippines Inc. | 1,330 | 741 | 79.5% | 17,168 | 14,298 | 20.1% |
| 4 | Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. | 901 | 701 | 28.5% | 11,086 | 10,203 | 8.7% |
| 5 | Isuzu Philippines Corp. | 1,199 | 972 | 23.4% | 9 | 10,101 | -8.8% |
| 18 | MAN Automotive Concessionaires Corp. | 0 | 3 | -100.0% | 21 | 21 | 0.0% |
| 2 | Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. | 2,432 | 1,555 | 56.4% | 23,247 | 17,539 | 32.5% |
| 10 | Nissan Motor Philippines Inc. | 272 | 224 | 21.4% | 2,395 | 2,941 | -18.6% |
| 16 | PGA Cars, Inc. (Porsche/Audi) | 22 | 32 | -31.3% | 262 | 242 | 8.3% |
| 13 | Pilipinas Hino Inc. | 138 | 44 | 213.6% | 508 | 398 | 27.6% |
| 15 | Scandinavian Motors Corp. (VOLVO) | 22 | 20 | 10.0% | 263 | 250 | 5.2% |
| 9 | Suzuki Phils., Inc. | 287 | 133 | 115.8% | 2,627 | 2,182 | 20.4% |
| 1 | Toyota Motors Philippines Corp. | 4,900 | 3,918 | 25.1% | 46,193 | 45,915 | 0.6% |
| 7 | Universal Motors Corp. | 452 | 344 | 31.4% | 5,071 | 4,789 | 5.9% |
| | TOTAL | 13,596 | 9,855 | 37.5% | 132,444 | 124,449 | 6.4% |
| Data source: Joint CAMPI and Truck Manufacturers Association sales report | |||||||
