As months progress for this year, we are now seeing a hopeful recovery for the Philippine automotive industry. In fact, the entire local auto industry sees all green for its recorded sales figures from January to May 2021, compared to the numbers in the same period last year.
Year-to-date (YTD) data shows the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) posting 110,217 units sold in the first five months of 2021, while the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors, Inc. (AVID) recorded 25,217 units sold.
Of note, both numbers are way more than what was sold last year in the same period – 59 percent sales increase for AVID and 58 percent for CAMPI. The AVID even reported a whopping 293 percent increase in sales in May 2021 compared to the same month in 2020 – but we all know that last year – the height of the pandemic with very strict movement restrictions in place – wasn’t exactly the best in terms of car sales.
On a month-over-month basis, the Philippine auto industry still saw an all-green affair for the month of May. The AVID sold a total of 4,864 units in May 2021, reflecting an 8 percent increase from the number of units moved in April 2021.
The CAMPI, on the other hand, sold 22,062 units in May 2021, which was a 24 percent growth compared to April of the same year.
Lighter Restrictions
At this point, it’s quite clear that the industry depends on how strict the restrictions are to move more vehicles to customers. The month of May saw lighter restrictions on movement and business operations, which in turn allowed better conversion of inquiries to sales.
With the NCR and other nearby provinces still under a lighter GCQ with some restrictions until the end of June, we’re expecting the same growth for this month.
Stiff Rankings
April 2021 saw Ford Philippines re-claiming the third spot in the local auto industry – a position it held over three years ago, thanks to the popularity of the Ford Ranger and Everest.
For May, Ford Philippines retains the third spot with 7.48 percent of the overall YTD sales pie going to the Blue Oval. Of course, the consistent leaders Toyota Motor Philippines and Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation, are still on top with 47.65 percent and 15.36 percent, respectively.
Suzuki Philippines, on the other hand, isn’t too far behind the Blue Oval, while Nissan Philippines completes the industry’s top five from January to May 2021.