Automotive sales increased 3.5 percent in 2019 to 369,941 units from 357,410 units in 2018, two industry groups said Tuesday.
The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. and the Truck Manufacturers Association said that including the sales of other groups, the local automotive market likely hit the 2019 sales target of 410,000 units.
CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said that ending the year with positive figures was a welcome relief for the industry coming from a double-digit decline in 2018.
“The year 2019 has been challenging for the industry due to various internal and external factors. Thankfully, the industry’s collective efforts, supported by sustained economic growth, have paid off. We will not rest on our laurels as we aim for further growth in the coming months, and hopefully for the whole of 2020,” he said.
Commercial vehicles raised its market share to 70.48 percent, representing a 5-percent increase to 260,744 units in 2019 from 248,390 units in 2018. Commercial sales went up by 8.1 percent in December to 24,469 from 22,644 units in the same month in 2018.
Passenger car sales grew slightly by 0.2 percent last year to 109,197 units from 109,020 units in 2018.
Passenger car sales in December went down by 3.19 percent to 9,246 units.
Toyota Motors Philippines Corp. led sales in 2019 with a market share of 43.79 percent, followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. with 17.32 percent, Nissan Philippines Inc. with 11.54 percent, Suzuki Philippines Inc. with 6.47 percent and Ford Motor Company Philippines Inc. with 5.92 percent.