Imported car sales up 40% from January to April

MANILA, Philippines — Sales of imported vehicles rose by 40 percent in the four months to April as all segments registered growth, even as government imposed lockdowns due to the surge in COVID-19 cases and slapped provisional safeguard duties on imported automobiles.

The Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors Inc. (AVID) said it sold a total of 20,353 units from January to April, up from the 14,572 units sold in the same period last year.

Passenger car (PC) sales rose 16 percent to 5,328 units from 4,574 units the previous year.

Light commercial vehicle (LCV) sales climbed by 44 percent to 14,314 units from 9,906 units, while CV sales jumped 673 percent to 711 units from 92 units in the same period last year.

For April alone, AVID’s total sales zoomed to 4,496 units from just 18 units in the same month the previous year on a low base effect amid lockdowns implemented by the government.

PC sales in April jumped to 1,087 units from only seven units; LCV sales grew to 3,116 units from just 11 units; and CV sales reached 293 units compared to zero in the same month the previous year.

Last March, the government placed Metro Manila and nearby provinces under enhanced community quarantine in response to rising COVID-19 cases.

Metro Manila and the nearby areas recently shifted to general community quarantine, but with heightened restrictions.