Car sales in June up 25.3% year-on-year

MANILA - The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. said vehicle sales in June went up by a quarter year-on-year amid the improvement in member-firms supply chain.

In a statement, the group said its members sold a total of 13,697 units last month from 10,935 units the same month in 2011. This brought first-half sales to 72,874 units from last year's 69,782.

"The local automotive industry continues to exceed monthly forecasts and perform better than expected because of these favourable situations," Campi said, referring to the return to normal of member-firms' supply chain and an improving economy.

Toyota Motor Philippines kept its lead, capturing 40 percent of the market, followed by Mitsubishi with 23 percent and Honda with 8 percent.

"We are very pleased to end the first semester of the year on a high note. This is indeed a positive sign that the local automotive landscape as a whole is on track to recover lost sales opportunities from earlier in the year. In addition to this, we would like to showcase our strong performance and kick start the 2nd half of the year by holding the 4th Philippine International Motor Show," said Rommel Gutierrez, president of Campi.

The increase in the industry's sales came on the back of Ford Motors' decision to shut down its manufacturing plant in Sta. Rosa, Laguna by the end of the year. The US carmaker sells less than 1,000 units in the Philippine market.

"Use all levers"

Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo on Tuesday said he cannot say whether the US carmaker's export strategy was wrong, adding that the decision was made from a global standpoint.

"But their pullout is a signal that the Philippines is still lacking," Domingo said.

He said a roadmap that the government and the industry are drawing up would include measures on how to increase the domestic car market so there would be economies of scale for manufacturers. The roadmap also should identify gaps in the supply chain and "figure out how to fill in those gaps," he said.

But sales cannot surge unless per capital income in the Philippines hits $2,000, Domingo said.

The government however is "willing to use all levers" to achieve the desired market size, such as giving incentives "allowable by law," he said, without providing details on the perks.

source: interaksyon.com

Negros To Promote Arabica Coffee At Next FOODEX In Japan

MANILA, Philippines — Negros province is eyeing a slice of the US$9-billion global market for Arabica coffee as it joins the Philippine delegation for the first time in the upcoming 37th International Food and Beverage Exhibition or FOODEX Japan 2012 slated on March 6-9 at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan.

Led by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) through the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), the Philippine presence in the fair affirms the country's long-term strategy to further deepen ties with Japan, historically one of the Philippines' strongest trade partners.

"Targeting Japan's emerging organic market is part of our aggressive exploration of new niché areas for our food products, even as we also aim to improve the competitiveness of our manufacturers by exposing them to international benchmarks," said Rosvi C. Gaetos, Executive Director of CITEM.

Representing Negros Island's participation is the Negros Island Sustainable Agriculture & Rural Development Foundation, Inc. (NISARD) under the leadership of Negros Occidental Governor Alfredo Maranon, Jr. NISARD's Arabica Coffee Expansion Program envisions to grow one million organic Arabica trees by 2013, in order to position the island as a major supplier of organic Arabica coffee in Asia.

The program establishes organic Arabica coffee nurseries in various assisted community organizations in Mt. Kanla-on Natural Park (MKNP) and in the Northern Negros Forest Reserve (NNFR) to protect the remaining forest cover in these areas. It also provides additional income to the coffee farmers and equips them to serve the needs of the local market and eventually export in the future.

"While Negros Island currently has more available Robusta coffee trees than Arabica, our goal is to capitalize on the internationally preferred Arabica variety and have a sustainable supply within three to four years," said Rommel T. Ledesma, General Manager of NISARD.

"FOODEX Japan is an excellent opportunity to generate buzz on our goal to becoming Asia's organic food bowl and to generate more awareness on the advantages of healthy, naturally grown food. Japan is the world's third largest importer of coffee and as a market has great potential for organic agro-based products. We look forward to building partnerships with Japanese investors to help us further these goals," he said.

Aside from organic coffee, Negros Island will highlight its other organic products including muscovado sugar, unpolished rice, herbal products, and essential oils.

source: mb.com.ph

September Vehicles Sales Gain 8.6%

MANILA, Philippines — Motor vehicle sales continued to improve with sales in September posting 8.6 percent increase over the previous month and the decline on a year to date basis has narrowed down to 3.5 percent over the same period last year, a report by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) said.

In the report, CAMPI said that sales in September reached 12,555 units or 8.6 percent up over 11,558 units in August.

For the January-September period, total auto sales hit 105,663 units or 3.5 percent lower than the 109,517 units in the same nine-month period last year.

The decline on a year-to-date basis has been narrowed down to 3.5 percent as against from 4.1 percent decrease in the eight month period this year.

CAMPI attributed the sluggishness in the year to date due to the reduction in the supply of some models.

CAMPI’s original sales forecast this year was placed at 175,000 or 4-5 percent higher than 2010 sales figure.

In May this year, CAMPI mulled the reduction in growth target to flat or between 1 to 2 percent at best following the reduced production of the country’s major car manufacturers due to the disruption in the supply of parts and components as a result of the Japan disasters.

Of the overall sales, the passenger car sales grew by 4.2% with sales of 4,195 units while commercial vehicles contributed an 11% growth with 8,360 units. Overall sales in this segment for the January-September period reached 35,485 units or 2.4 percent down versus 36,339 units in the same period last year.

In the commercial vehicle segment, the highest growth was registered by light commercial vehicles at 26.7%. A combination of factors boosted the monthly sales performance in the various segments such as improvement in supply of some models, fleet deliveries and introduction of new models.

The nine-month sales for the commercial segment posted a 4.1 percent decline to 70,178 units versus 73,178 units in the same period last year.

Of the commercial vehicle categories, the Asian utility vehicles registered a 9.8 percent decline in September over August and 4.7 percent decline on a year to date basis.

The huge decline in AUV sales was attributed to the limited supply of models in this category.

Sales of light commercial vehicles posted a significant 26.7 percent in September over August due to the introduction of new models and consistent high demand for sports utility vehicles.

On a year to date, however, LCV sales posted a negative 4.2 percent.

For light trucks, month on month sales increased by 10.1 percent due to completion of fleet transactions. Year-to-date sales for LCV also increased by 3.5 percent.

Sales of trucks and buses improved by 11.9 percent in September versus August while sales on a year to date basis was up 9 percent due to deliveries and stock availability.

In terms of ranking, sales of industry leader Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. declined by 4.5 percent to 39,421 units from 41,281 units in the same period of 2010.

Source: mb.com.ph