New vehicle sales in the Philippines increased by almost 7% to 42,044 units in December 2024 from 39,153 units a year earlier – according to member wholesale data released jointly by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA). Sales last month were driven by strong demand for commercial vehicles, which increased by 8% year-on-year to 31,919 units, while passenger vehicle volumes increased by 5.5% to 10,125 units.
The Philippine vehicle market has been remarkably resilient this year, after rebounding strongly from the pandemic in the previous two years, despite a slowdown in overall economic growth in the third quarter of 2024 to 5.2% year-on-year from 6.4% in the second quarter. This mainly reflected mainly a slowdown in government spending and weaker fixed investment growth, however, while household spending growth accelerated to 5.1% from 4.7%. The central bank has cut its benchmark interest rate by 75-basis points since last August to 5.75% to help support domestic consumption.
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Data released jointly by the two associations shows vehicle sales rose by 9% to 467,252 units last year from429,807 in 2023, with commercial vehicle sales increasing by 8% to 346,482 units while passenger car sales rose by over 10% to 120,770 units.
Toyota reported a 9% sales increase to 218,019 units last year, followed by Mitsubishi Motors with 89,124 units (+14%); Ford 27,997 units (+11%); Nissan 26,774 units (-1%); and Suzuki 20,371 units (+10%).
CAMPI expects the vehicle market to continue to grow in 2025, with full-year sales forecast to exceed 500,000 units. The association’s president, Rommel Gutierrez, told reporters: “The positive results in December reflect the continued strength of the industry, with strong growth in both passenger cars and key commercial vehicle segments. The overall market remains on track to sustain growth into 2025.”
Last year the government added hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) to its EO12 zero-tariff programme, which was previously available only for zero-emission vehicles such as battery electric vehicles (BEVs), until 2028. Local automakers are stepping up HEV launches in response to this new policy.
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By GlobalDataMichael. Ricafort, Chief Economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation, expects the electrified vehicle segment to be a key driver of growth in 2025. He pointed out: “The Philippines has yet to catch up with other countries in increasing the demand for EVs and hybrid vehicles, given the increased competition in terms of lower prices from China, Vietnam and other countries.”
