Car sales in the Philippines increased 12.7 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2024, 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 their members sold 109,606 units from January to March this year.
This represented an increase from 97,284 units they delivered in the same period in 2023.
“Year-to-date sales performance was driven by sustained demand for new vehicles, supported by overall supply improvement. Our first-quarter performance keeps us on track to achieve our 2024 target,” said CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez.
Gutierrez said the industry saw a sustained growth as it showed resilience despite global supply challenges.
First-quarter sales also represented 23 percent of CAMPI’s conservative forecast of 468,300 units in 2024, he said.
Data showed that the three-month passenger car sales went up 14 percent to 28,211 units, while commercial vehicle sales grew 12.2 percent to 81,395 units.
The automotive industry closed first quarter with a strong performance despite a slight a month-on-month decline of 1.6 percent to 37,474 units from 38,072 units in February 2024.
Commercial vehicle sales pulled down monthly sales by 3.8 percent to 27,247 units in March from 28,434 in February. Passenger car sales went up 5.07 percent to 10,127 units from 9,638 units.
Car sales rose 1.6 percent in March 2024 from 36,880 units in the same month in 2023. Passenger car sales increased 0.7 percent from 10,058 units, while commercial vehicle sales rose 2 percent from 26,882 units.
Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. led automotive sales with a 45.31-percent share, followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. with 19.04 percent, Nissan Philippines Inc. with 7.22 percent, Ford Group Philippines with 6.87 percent and Suzuki Philippines Inc. with 4.01 percent.