CAMPI, TMA: Vehicle sales up in February 2020

Despite challenges posed by recent events such as the Taal Volcano eruption and the COVID-19 outbreak, vehicle sales for February this year have been brisk.

This was according to joint sales figures released by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA).

Toyota Motors Philippines Corp. led the charge with 21,173 units sold or a 39.57 percent market share. Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. came in second at 10,590 units or 19.79 percent market share, while Nissan Philippines Inc. holds third place with 6,766 units for a 12.64 percent market share.

Light commercial vehicles made up the bulk of unit sales

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February 2020 sales figures rose by 13.2 percent compared to the same period last year from 26,327 to 29,790 units, even besting the 23,723-unit sales posted in January 2020 by 25.6 percent.

Commercial vehicles sold last month stood at 21,697 units, a 21.5 percent increase from 17,856 units that rolled off the showrooms in February 2019. End-February sales resulted in 38,877 units sold, a 7.2 percent uptick from 36,257 a year ago.

Passenger cars, meanwhile, took a slight dive with 8,093 units sold, 4.5 percent less than 8,471 units from the previous year.

Toyota Motor Philippines led the surge in vehicle sales for February 2020 

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Sales by end-February settled at 14,636 units, 13.7 percent lower than last year’s 16,948. All in all, there has been a 0.6 percent growth in car sales for the first two months of 2020 at 53,513 units, compared to 53,215 units during the same period last year.

According to CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez, the double-digit growth exceeded their expectations, adding that February 2020 sales figures have been the highest for the same period in the last decade.

“While the industry remains optimistic that this growth will be sustained in the coming months, we cannot disregard the ripple effect of Covid-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) moving forward,” he said, noting the complexity of the auto industry as an integrated supply chain both domestically and internationally.

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