Philippine automotive sales grew 2.5 percent to 150,654 units in the first four months of 2025 from 145,920 a year ago, two industry groups said Monday.
The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) said in a joint report that commercial vehicle sales climbed 10.3 percent to 119,824 from 108,667 units a year earlier.
Sales of light commercial vehicles grew 12.3 percent to 89,693 units from 79,863.
Orders for Asian utility vehicles and multipurpose vehicles (MPVs) rose 3.7 percent to 26,428 units, while heavy-duty trucks and buses (Category V) recorded the highest increase of 69.3 percent to 369 units from a low base of 218 in 2024.
Light-duty trucks and buses went up by 16.6 percent to 2,176 units, while medium-duty trucks and buses dipped 5.9 percent to 1,158 units.
Meanwhile, the passenger car segment experienced a sharp 19.5-percent year-on-year drop to 30,830 units from 38,280 in the same period last year.
Month-on-month, industry sales decreased 16.7 percent to 33,580 units in April from 40,306 sold in March.
Passenger car sales posted a steep 23.09-percent decline to 6,498 units in April 2025 from 8,449 in March 2025, while commercial vehicle sales dropped 15 percent to 27,082 from 31,857 a month ago.
Sales of electrified vehicles (xEVs), including battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and HEVs, reached 6,820 units, representing 5.69 percent of the total market.
Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) accounted for the majority of electrified vehicle sales with 5,744 units sold year-to-date, followed by battery electric vehicles (BEVs) with 978 units and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) with 98.
Month-on-month sales for the xEV segment declined 20.4 percent to 1,509 units in April from 1,895 units in March 2025.
While the overall market trajectory remains positive, the recent slowdown is likely due to seasonal factors, economic conditions or shifting consumer preferences, industry leaders said.
They said they are closely monitoring the trends and anticipate further developments in the coming months.
Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. maintained its lead with a 47.74-percent market share, followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. with 19.76 percent, Nissan Philippines Inc. with 5.43 percent, Suzuki Philippines Inc. with 4.65 percent and Ford Group Philippines with 4.47 percent.