ALMOST, BUT NOT QUITE

Auto industry misses 2021 overall sales target by 6,029 units

The year-to-date December 2021 sales report of the Philippine Automotive Dealers Association (PADA) indicates that the industry missed its total overall sales target for 2021 by only 6,029 units.

The industry’s 2021 target as cited by Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) president Rommel Gutierrez last November is 295,400 units. PADA reported that an overall total of 289,371 passenger cars (PC) and commercial vehicles (CV) were sold by year-end 2021, which is 6,029 vehicles short of 295,400.

The PADA report covers the sales of CAMPI, the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) and the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors (AVID). The sales figures presented by PADA per brand, when counter-checked with those of CAMPI for YTD December 2021, were exactly the same. No counter-checking could be made with AVID’s sales figures because as of press time, AVID had not yet released its 2021 sales report.

TOP 10: NISSAN OVERTAKES SUZUKI

The only change among the top 10 sales performers was Nissan PH, Inc. overtaking Suzuki PH, Inc. for 4th place with YTD sales of 19,603 units versus Suzuki’s 19,391, or a difference of 212 vehicles.

Meanwhile, the other brands retained the positions they were holding in November. Per the PADA sales report, the Top Ten in 2021 were: Hyundai and Geely are the only AVID members that made it to the Top Ten. AVID claims Ford Motor Co. PH, Inc. and Nissan as members, but they are also listed by CAMPI as members.

TOP BRANDS IN PC SALES

Passenger car sales still count despite the increasing popularity of crossovers and sport utility vehicles (SUVs). Remember that the perpetually best-selling vehicle across all segments in this country is the Toyota Vios, a PC.

Last year, a total of 89,400 PCs were sold, according to the PADA report. These were the winning brands in terms of PC sales:

The No. 1-selling models of Honda Cars PH, Inc. and Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. are PCs: the Honda City and the Hyundai Accent. The Mirage G4, a PC, ranks 3rd among the top-selling models of Mitsubishi Motors PH Corp.

COMMERCIAL VEHICLE (CV) TOP SELLING BRANDS

To many people, the term “commercial vehicles” refers to SUVs/crossovers, pickup trucks, multipurpose vehicles (MPVs) minivans, and light duty or mini trucks --- not necessarily 10-wheelers, heavy duty cargo trucks or container vans. In 2021, a total of 199,971 CVs were sold, according to the PADA report.

PADA listed the brands that sold the biggest number of CVs last year:

Notice that the top five produce pickup trucks and pickup platform-based, midsize SUVs while the lower five market car-based crossovers, compact and subcompact SUVs. Several brands offer light trucks for delivering goods or for conversion into public utility vehicles such as the Isuzu Traviz, Suzuki Carry, Hyundai H-100 and Kia K2500.

LUXURY CAR SALES

Despite the economic devastation caused by COVID-19, there was still a market for luxury cars in 2021. After all, as pointed out by Oxfam International, Asia’s richest were shielded from the impact of the pandemic and many even thrived.

The premium brands that reported their sales were the following:

SUMMING UP

2021 was a relatively good year for the auto industry considering the disruptions inflicted by the pandemic lockdowns. Missing the year’s sales target by some 6,000 units only confirms the industry’s resilience. As CAMPI president Gutierrez noted, the overall growth of 20 percent compared to 2020 was no small feat, likewise the positive growths registered for four consecutive months.

The year 2021 began with a bang when the industry’s top 10 rankings that had remained essentially unchanged during the first pandemic year of 2020 were suddenly scrambled. Will the start of this Year of the Tiger be equally jolting? Watch out for PDI Motoring’s industry sales report next month.