Car sales skid 63% in March

MANILA, Philippines — Local vehicle assemblers posted their weakest monthly sales in March, dropping by 63 percent from the previous month, as automotive firms had to temporarily close dealerships amid a lockdown imposed by the government to curb the spread of COVID-19.

A  joint report released by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) yesterday showed combined vehicle sales reached 11,029 units in March, lower than the 29,790 units sold in February.

CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said the double-digit contraction in March is the weakest monthly performance of the automotive industry so far.

Compared to the 32,173 units sold in March last year, CAMPI and TMA’s total sales in March this year plunged 66 percent.

Passenger car (PC) sales fell 66 percent to 3,150 units in March from 9,214 units in the same month the previous year.

Commercial vehicle (CV) sales also dropped 66 percent to 7,879 units in March from 22,959 units in the same month a year ago.

Gutierrez attributed the weak performance to the shutdown of dealerships in the second half of March as the government implemented an enhanced community quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the first quarter, CAMPI and TMA sold a total of 64,542 units, 24 percent lower than the 85,388 units in the same period last year.

As of end-March, PC sales slid 32 percent to 17,786 units from 26,172 units in the previous year.

CV sales also decreased 21 percent to 46,756 units in the first quarter from 59,216 units in the same period a year ago.

Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. remained the market leader in the first quarter with a 39.81 percent share of total sales.

Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. followed with an 18.96 percent share and Nissan Philippines Inc. with 13.20 percent share ranked third.

Completing the top five are Honda Cars Philippines Inc. with 6.48 percent share and Ford Motor Co. Philippines Inc. with six percent share.

“Indeed, challenging times ahead for the industry. For now, the industry remains hopeful for the containment of the virus at the soonest possible time while being resilient amid this crisis,” Gutierrez said.

Earlier, he said total automotive industry sales may decline by at least 20 percent this year given the COVID-19 outbreak.

Last year, the country’s total automotive sales covering vehicles sold by the CAMPI and the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors Inc. reached more than 410,000 units