DTI asks car firms for 'credible strategy' to boost production

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) called on the local automotive sector to present a “credible strategy” to boast vehicle production.

Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo stressed that the government has been very supportive of the auto industry for the longest time. “Something should have happened already,” he said in Filipino. He said that the best gauged of how successful the industry is is the exports. “If they can’t export, I can’t call the industry competitive.”

Sales of automobiles have been going up but it is mostly imported vehicles. He reminded the local auto industry to come up with a credible plan and then see what will happen. Domingo said the focus should no longer be the domestic market.

Although no plan has been presented yet to the government, Domingo said that the government is still willing to work with the industry to reverse the declining trend in local automotive manufacturing. He said the government is willing to work on the power cost and the overall business environment.

Earlier, it was revealed that the Vietnam auto industry is poised to overtake the Philippine car industry sooner rather than later. Toyota Motor Asia Pacific Senior Vice President Vince Socco said that the Vietnamese car industry is very robust.

In terms of sales, 2009 figures show that the Philippines lead auto sales by a very small margin. However, what is alarming is that Vietnam is already out producing the Philippines. This implies that most of the vehicles sold in the Philippines are imported.

“Vietnam outproduces the Philippines by 40 percent as of 2009,” Socco said.

“The Philippines has a lot of catching up to do,” Socco said. “The CMVDP (Comprehensive Motor Vehicle Development Plan) is pointing to the right direction by indentifying what the industry should focus on.”