The Philippines should make its car production industry more competitive to avoid losing out to its Southeast Asian neighbours according to Bosch.
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Roland Odenthal, managing director of Robert Bosch, Inc. (Philippines), said there are no indications yet of putting up a manufacturing facility here, noting that the country lags behind Thailand and Malaysia in car manufacturing.
“Bosch is heavily investing where our customers are… particularly where there’s a strong automotive industry. Unfortunately, there’s not too much car production in the Philippines,” he told reporters in Manila.
Thailand, Mr. Odenthal said, manufactures about 1.5 million vehicles a year, while Malaysia makes close to 500,000 cars compared with about 100,000 in the Philippines.
Bosch, however, is expecting 20% growth in Philippine sales this year, driven by a strong regional economy and high demand for power tools and automotive products, Mr. Odenthal said. The local subsidiary posted 20% growth last year.
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By GlobalData“We are quite happy with the turnover here. We’re already strong in the Philippine market, but the market is not that big,” he said.
The Philippines vehicle market expanded by 12.5% year-on-year in May to 10,900 units, according to data released by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines (CAMPI).
