New vehicle sales in the Philippines increased by 1.5% to 59,022 units in the first five months of 2011, according to member data released by the Chamber of Automotive and Manufacturers of the Philippines (CAMPI).
Sales in May fell by 7.6% to 10,913 units compared with 11,816 in April, as key members cut output in response to shortages of parts from Japan in the wake of the devastating earthquake and tsunamis in March.
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Sales of passenger cars increased by 2.1% to 19,568 units in this period, while commercial vehicle sales grew by 1.1% to 39,454 units. Toyota sold 21,365 vehicles, followed by Mitsubishi Motors with 14,062 units and Honda with 5,938 units.
The association’s president, Elizabeth Lee, expects the current market weakness to continue in June, with output beginning to recover in July as key suppliers in Japan restore operations.
Lee said the association is reviewing its full-year forecasts of 175,000 units in light of these developments, but remains optimistic lost output will be recovered in the second half of the year.
Meanwhile, the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors (AVID) said its members reported a 4% increase in sales to 9,658 vehicles in the first five months. Hyundai Automotive Resources accounted for 8,062 of these sales.
