Vehicle sales recover in May

MANILA, Philippines — Car sales recovered in May after registering the lowest level in April as the government eased community quarantine restrictions.

On a year-on-year basis, however, sales in May went down by 85 percent on weak demand for both passenger cars (PC) and commercial vehicles (CV).

Data released yesterday showed that the combined sales of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) jumped to 4,788 units in May from just 133 units in April.

CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said the industry anticipated the increase in sales in May coming from the lowest sales performance recorded in April, given the easing of community quarantine and lockdown restrictions.

CAMPI and TMA’s sales in May this year, however, were way below the 30,998 units sold in the same month last year.

PC sales in May reached 1,389 units, down 85 percent from 9,053 units in the same month a year ago.

CV sales also declined by 85 percent to 3,399 units in May from the previous year’s 21,945 units.

“While May figures are still way below the industry’s monthly average sales performance, we welcome any positive signs of recovery amid the pandemic and this season of new normal where dealerships have resumed operations at a reduced level and stringent safety protocols are being implemented at all times,” Gutierrez said.

For the January to May period, CAMPI and TMA sales declined by 51 percent to 69,463 units from 142,185 units in the same period last year.

PC sales slid by 55 percent to 19,201 units in the five-month period from 42,886 units in the same period a year ago.

CV sales also fell by 49 percent to 50,262 units from January to May compared to last year’s 99,299 units.

Gutierrez said the industry anticipates a slower consumer demand for new vehicles for the coming months as cars are considered as big-ticket investments.

“But we hope to see some gradual recovery perhaps by fourth quarter of the year,” he said.

Earlier, he said CAMPI expects total automotive industry sales to drop by at least 20 percent this year amid the pandemic.

Total vehicle sales covering those sold by the CAMPI and the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors Inc. reached more than 410,000 units last year.