While it might not be their best-selling model of the month, the all-new Focus was still able to help drive Ford Philippines' sales up by 61% in March 2013. That's because the blue oval brand was able to sell 101 units in March which is its strongest sales performance since the model was launched last year. Because of this, overall sales of the compact increased by 55% in the first quarter of 2013. Not bad Ford. Not bad at all.
On a bigger perspective, March's retail sales rose 61% year-over-year to 1,000 vehicles compared to 2012's mere 623. But do care to note that they were suffering from a supply shortage back then.
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Industry Update
03 April 2013
AVID sales down by 20% in February 2013
This is definitely not the way to start the year. 7 out of 11 members of the Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors (AVID) have just reported a 20% sales drop in February 2013. Collectively, they recorded only 2,303 units sold compared to the 2,881 units from February 2013. On a year-to-date (YTD) standpoint, that's still a 11% decline in just the first two months of the year.
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Industry Update
01 April 2013
D'oh! HARI sales tumble by 31% in February 2013
2013 isn't starting to well for Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. (HARI). After experiencing a 7.5% year-to-year sales drop in January, sales tumble even further in February. Sales totalled 1,631 units sold which is not so bad for a car brand in the Philippines, but is a huge 31% drop from the 2,369 in the same month in 2012. And according to their official press release, the decline is caused by “unstable local supply due to strong global demand.”
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Industry Update
Honda Cars Philippines Inc. (HCPI) recently broke ground in Naga City to mark its official entry in the Bicol region. Honda Cars Camarines Sur will soon rise along San Jose, National Highway, Pili, Camarines Sur as HCPI's 30th dealership in the country. Owned by Jeremie Lo, it will offer Honda's full model line-up as well as after sales service when it opens by the second half of 2013.
Once it opens, Bicolanos will be greeted by competent service technicians, well-trained sales associates, and accomodating customer relations officers.
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Industry Update
Words by Christopher Kho
Manufacturing cars in the Philippines is no joke. With our country's small automotive industry (and limited government support), Honda, Isuzu, Mitsubishi, and Toyota can probably make more money if they just imported everything from other countries, say... Thailand. But collectively, their operations generate around 8,000 jobs in vehicle manufacturing and another 60,000 in parts manufacturing - supporting the local economy and generating employment for Filipinos. And to further push its growth, the Philippine Automotive Competitiveness Council Inc. (PACCI) is urging some 150 Japanese automotive execs to invest and set up plants here in the Philippines to make locally-manufactured car parts.
“It is crucial for a car manufacturing industry to have the support of locally-manufactured parts,” says PACCI Chairman Feliciano L. Torres. “Bulky, cumbersome items like large stamped body parts and large injection molding parts are expensive to import. If the Philippine car making industry could have a deep pool of locally-manufactured parts, the industry would be far more competitive.”
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Industry Update
Honda Cars Philippines Inc. (HCPI) is bringing their cars and services one step closer to their customers in Visayas. Expected to begin operations by the second half of 2013, Honda Cars Tacloban will become HCPI's 5th authorized dealer in Visayas and 29th nationwide.
Honda Cars Tacloban is owned by the Mercado Group of Companies (MGC) and will offer the full line-up of Honda products and services to customers in the Easter Visayas region. The said dealership will rise along Diversion Road, Maharlika Highway in Tacloban City, Leyte. The facility will sit on a land area of 2,500 sq. meters and will house a vehicle showroom and service facility. Services will include preventive maintenance, general repairs, and body and paint repair service.
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Industry Update
Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) recently hosted its Annual Dealer Conference where it recognized the remarkable performance of its dealer network and its staff, in areas of Sales, After Sales, Customer Satisfaction, and Overall Dealer Operations. Likewise, TMP was also awarded by Toyota Motor Corporation (TMP), Toyota Motor Asia Pacific (TMAP) and Mitsui & Co., for its achievements from the previous year.
The most coveted “President's Award of Excellence” (equivalent to Dealer of the Year to others) was presented to Toyota Cabanatuan, which was only one of the several awards it received that night. They were also awarded the President's Cup of CS Excellence for garnering the highest rating in Customer Satisfaction amongst all Toyota dealers nationwide. Toyota Cabanatuan President Jose Tan, Jr. received the awards in behalf of his team.
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Industry Update
While Peugeot - through its official distributor Eurobrands Distributors Inc. (EDI) - officially arrived in the country late last year, it is only now can they truly start serving their customers as they open their first two dealerships in the Philippines. Now open for business is Peugeot Las Piñas and Peugeot Cagayan de Oro.
Located along Zapote Road in southern Metro Manila and Mastersons Avenue in Cagayan de Oro City, Peugeot Las Piñas and Peugeot Cagayan de Oro both offer full sales, service, and after-sales services. They aim to provide the full Peugeot ownership experience to their customers while ascribing fully to Peugeot international standards. Go for a quick visit and check out Peugeot's full lineup: the 3008 crossover, 5008 compact MPV, 508 executive sedan, and RCZ sports car.
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Industry Update
