The first semester of the year saw a reshuffling of the rankings of the Top 10 automotive sales performers. This was gleaned from the media sales report released jointly by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA).
The reshuffle took place while Toyota and Mitsubishi, not surprisingly, retained the No. 1 and No. 2 slots, respectively.
Toyota built an enormous lead of 104,350 vehicles sold in the first half of the year, the only brand to post sales in six digits in a period of six months. Toyota Motor PH Corp. dominates the industry with 46.12-percent market share.
Mitsubishi Motors PH Corp., with sales of 42,599 units, was ahead of third placer Ford Motor PH, Inc. by 28,139 units in the first half, and holds 18.83-percent market share.
KIA VS GEELY
The most dramatic change was Kia’s elimination of Geely from the Top 10 honor roll.
Readers may recall that in the first quarter of the year, Sojitz G Auto PH Corp. (SGAP), the distributor of Geely, ranked no. 10 with 1,132 vehicles sold year-to-date March 2024.
As of YTD June 2024, however, per the CAMPI-TMA joint report, SGAP scored 2,128 units sold, compared to the 2,448 units sold by KP Motors, the distributor of Kia.
A difference of only 328 units, but enough for KP Motors Corp., the distributor of Kia, to replace SGAP.
The ouster of Geely means that there is only one made-in-China brand remaining in the Top 10: MG, which has been distributed in the PH since March this year by Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. (SAIC). Prior to SAIC’s takeover, MG was distributed by The Covenant Car Company, Inc. (TCCI), which is now left with only one brand: Chevrolet.
MG or Morris Garages, originally a British brand that SAIC acquired in 2007, retained its No. 9 perch by scoring 3,933 vehicle sales in the first sem. Last March, MG astounded auto industry observers when it replaced Geely in the no. 9 slot at the end of the first quarter by selling more vehicles (1,185) than Geely (1,132). Did the slim difference of 53 units sold foretell Geely’s forthcoming expulsion from the Top 10?
FORD’S REVENGE
Meanwhile, among the Top five, Ford exacted sweet revenge when it recovered the coveted 3rd place from Nissan by selling 14,460 units, thereby besting the Japanese brand’s score of 13,939 via a margin of 521. In the first quarter, Nissan toppled Ford, which was No. 3 all year in 2023, by selling 7,909 vehicles compared to Ford’s 7,531.
Auto industry observers may notice that among the Top 10 best-selling brands, five sell pickup trucks: Toyota, Mitsubishi, Ford, Nissan and Isuzu. The rest – Suzuki, Honda, Hyundai, MG and Kia – do not. Honda sells a pickup truck, the Ridgeline, in the United States, but hasn’t made it available here.
Including pickup trucks in their product line may be one reason why those five brands are on top. Pickup trucks belong to the commercial vehicles category and as noted by CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez in the CAMPI-TMA sales report, commercial vehicles (CVs) continue to drive industry performance at 166,404 units, accounting for 74 percent of total sales.
SEESAW BATTLE CHAPTER 2
Does the inclusion of a midsize pickup truck, the D-Max, in the product lineup of 6th placer Isuzu PH Corp. give it a marketing advantage?
Consider Isuzu’s continuing seesaw battle with Honda Cars PH., Inc. for the No. 6 slot. In the first quarter, Honda took the No. 6 slot from Isuzu by selling 30 more units than Isuzu. Back then, Honda sold 3,841 vehicles, while Isuzu sold 3,811. YTD December 2023, Isuzu (17,607 units sold) had led Honda (16,645 units sold) in sales by a margin of 962 units.
Small wonder that in YTD June 2024, Isuzu demolished Honda’s fragile margin of 30 units by selling 8,225 units compared to Honda’s 7,944. That’s a more robust lead of 281 units for Isuzu –perhaps accomplished with more sales of the D-Max?
In this market, Honda is known for its passenger cars, the Civic and City, and compact and subcompact crossovers, such as: the CR-V, HR-V, BR-V and Brio, while the Isuzu brand is mainly associated with commercial vehicles like the Traviz light commercial van and N-Series heavy-duty trucks aside from the D-Max pickup.
Incidentally, both Isuzu and Honda belong to the AC (Ayala Corp.) Mobility group, so it should be a friendly rivalry.
SUZUKI AND HYUNDAI STAY THE COURSE
By regularly introducing refreshed or totally new models on the market, Suzuki PH, Inc. and Hyundai Motor PH, Inc. have retained their No. 5 and No. 8 slots, respectively. Suzuki has been steady on the No. 5 perch in recent years while Hyundai, under South Korea HQ management, is on track to regain entry to the Top 5 circle.
Regarding the slight decline of 2.9 percent in the Month-on-Month sales record, CAMPI president Gutierrez attributed it to the decline in consumer demand aside from delays in the arrival of vehicle units and the limited supply of fast-moving variants.
