By Bernie Cahiles-Magkilat
Car sales went down 7 percent month on month in August, infamous for being a ‘ghost’ month, official industry data showed.
MB file (RMT)
According to a joint report by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA), sales in August reached only 29,599 units, 7 percent lower than the 31,810 units the previous month, July. Compared to August 2018 sales of 30,313 units, the decline was modest at 2.4 percent only.
“Supply constraints and the run out of outgoing models of some brands have hampered the industry’s rate of recovery in August. Together with that, the reality of the seasonal trends in the industry continue to hold true despite the boosted sales and marketing campaigns during the off-peak Month of August,” said CAMPI President Atty. Rommel Gutierrez.
“Traditionally, August has been a challenging month for the industry however, we expect a positive turnaround this September until the last quarter of the year as the industry introduces new car models along with more innovative and value-laden offers for car buyers.”
However, year-to-date sales improved by 2.44percent to 235,544 units against 229,941 units in the same period last year.
The passenger car segment was still down slightly to 70,596 units from 71,637 units. However, the commercial vehicle segment grew by 4.2 percent to 164,948 units from 158,304 units.
Among the car firms, Toyota Motor Philippines still led the sales with 4.1 percent growth followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines which sales declined by 7.3 percent.
Nissan Philippines finished third with 37 percent growth in sales.
“CAMPI will continue to push for sustainable sales efforts to headline our recovery from last year’s numbers. Our target of 410,000 units remains to be a highly achievable goal for the industry and we expect the road to recovery to continue until the end of the year,” said Gutierrez.