The Trade Department plans to make the Philippines a vehicle production hub and an exporter in Southeast Asia.
Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez broached the topic in a recent meeting with Mitsubishi Motors Corp. chairman and chief executive Osamu Masuko with the hope of encouraging vehicle manufacturers to export vehicles made from the Philippines.
The Trade Department asked Mitsubishi to start producing car models that could be exported.
“The intention is to produce specific models that will be exported to our neighbors in Asean. The good thing here is, as Mitsubishi is already present in other Asean countries like Thailand and Indonesia, they are planning to make certain countries as production hub for certain models, which will serve their respective domestic and export markets,” Lopez said.
The car company is preparing to tap a larger market for the country’s manufacturing base and help address the widening trade deficit.
Mitsubishi manufactures the Mirage G4 under the government’s Comprehensive Automotive Resurgence Strategy program.
The program aims to attract investments, stimulate demand, develop a vibrant local auto parts supplier base and implement industry regulations to revitalize the country’s automotive industry and turn it into a regional automotive manufacturing hub.
Masuko disclosed a company strategy to produce more units of Mirage G4 and L300 in the Philippines and to start exporting them to other Asean countries by 2019.
He said the intention was to collaborate with the Philippine government to develop the electric vehicle industry.
“We keep saying that building an export manufacturing base is the way to go. It is also a good import substitution strategy. Through this initiative, we will address the trade imbalance and provide more jobs to our countrymen,” Lopez said. Othel V. Campos
MMC invested P5.74 billion to level-up local production.
Mitsubishi is the second biggest automotive player in the Philippines with a market share of 19 percent as of November.