Car sales in the Philippines rose by six percent at the end of March, totaling to over 110,000 vehicles sold, driven largely by strong demand for multi-purpose commercial vehicles.

A joint report by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) showed that auto sales from January to March reached 117,074.

This figure is 6.8-percent higher than what was recorded during the first quarter of the previous year, which stood at 109,606.

Taking into account March alone, the month’s sales went up 2.9 percent from February’s 39,164 to 40,306 units.

The growth last month was fueled by a strong demand for commercial vehicles with 31,857 units sold, a 2.7-percent hike from the previous month’s 31,010 units.

Commercial vehicles, typically used by businesses to transport goods, notched 92,742 units during the first quarter of the year. This is a 13.9-percent hike from last year’s 81,395 units.

Passenger cars, which are designed to carry passengers, had a 3.6-percent uptick from 8,154 to 8,449 in March.

Last month, however, continued the overall decline in the segment as passenger cars registered a 13.7-percent decline from 28,211 in 2024 to 24,332 units.

Joint CAMPI-TMA data showed 1,895 units of electric vehicles (EVs) were sold in March, a 5.9-percent improvement from 1,816 units in February.

In total, the three-month period saw a total of 5,311 EVs sold.

CAMPI President Rommel Gutierrez earlier cited the country’s growing demand for EVs as one of the automotive sales trends this year.

He noted that customers have grown a liking to “connected and personalized driving experiences, alongside a shift towards sustainability and environmental concerns.”

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) chief economist Michael Ricafort told Manila Bulletin that the EV segment is still poised to grow as the new market niche appeases Filipinos’ growing appetite.

Ricafort said more players coming into the country would increase choices and competition in terms of price, quality, and technology.

He expects the EV industry to steer more sales as manufacturers “become more responsive to customers’ ever-changing requirements/preferences based on the latest technological advances in terms of added convenience and safety, with better terms and prices.”

For the first quarter of 2025, hybrid EVs take the charge with 4,544 units, which amounts to 86 percent of the total volume. This was followed by battery EVs with 692 units and hybrid plug-in EVs with 75 units.

Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. remains as the industry’s most dominant player, with a 47.4-percent market share in sales since January, selling a total of 55,513 units.

Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. followed this with a 19.9-percent market share, Nissan Philippines Inc. with 5.7 percent, Suzuki Philippines Inc. with 4.7 percent, and Ford Group Philippines at 4.5 percent.