AVID sales up 16%

MANILA, Philippines - Sales of the country’s vehicle importers rose 16 percent in April from a year ago on the back of the positive performance posted by both the light commercial vehicle (LCV) and passenger car (PC) segments.

The Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors, Inc. (AVID) said the group sold 2,657 units in April, up from the 2,293 units sold in the same month a year ago.

The LCV segment’s sales grew 28 percent to reach 1,412 units last month compared to just 1,106 units in April 2013.

Contributing to the higher LCV sales were units sold by CATS Motors, Inc.(Mercedes Benz, Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge), Subaru and Chevrolet.

PC sales climbed five percent to 1,245 units in April from 1,187 units in the same month last year.

The growth in PC sales was supported by the performance of Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc., Chevrolet and CATS.

For the January to April period, AVID’s sales posted a 14 percent increase to 11,712 units from the 10,283 units in the comparable period in the previous year.

LCV sales as of end-April reached 5,909 units, a 16 percent uptick from 5,080 units in the same period last year.

PC sales for the four-month period went up 12 percent to 5,803 units from 5,203 units in the same period a year ago.

The AVID expects sales for the rest of the year to continue to grow.

“With AVID’s positive stretch since the start of the year, the group’s prevalent strength will be sustained on the back of our captivating offerings and strong pursuit for customer service excellence,” AVID president Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo said.