AVID sales almost flat in Jan-July

MANILA, Philippines - Sales of vehicle importers were nearly unchanged in the January to July period compared to a year ago amid continued problems with passenger car (PC) supply.

In a statement yesterday, the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors, Inc. (AVID) said it sold 18,147 units as of end-July, up just one percent from the 18,018 units sold in the comparable period a year ago.

The group’s PC sales declined 16 percent to 9,167 units in the seven-month period compared to the 10,906 units sold in the previous year.

Sales of light commercial vehicles (LCV) meanwhile, rose  26 percent in the seven-month period to reach 8,980 units from just 7,112 units last year.

AVID attributed the positive sales performance of the LCVs to the new offerings of automotive brands Chevrolet, Hyundai and Subaru.

For the month of July alone, AVID sold a total of 2,802 vehicles, 26 percent higher than its sales of 2,218 vehicles in the same month in 2012.

Compared to the group’s sales performance in the previous month which reached 2,447 units, July sales went up 14.5 percent.

While AVID’s latest sales were nearly unchanged from last year’s, the group remains positive that the automotive industry would end with higher sales this year than in 2012.

“The Philippine automotive industry is set to soar alongside the country as improving investor sentiments contribute to an increasingly robust domestic economy,” AVID president Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo said.

Earlier, the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) said that its combined sales with the Truck Manufacturers Association Inc. reached 102,913 units, an 18 percent increase from the 87,374 units sold in the comparable period last year.

As new vehicle models and bigger promotion packages are expected in the second-half and the country continues its strong economic performance, the CAMPI expects total vehicle sales this year to beat 2012’s.

The CAMPI expects total vehicle sales in the country to reach 210,000 units this year.

Last year, the country’s total vehicle sales reached 184,248 units.