Phl lags behind in vehicle output

MANILA, Philippines – Motor vehicle assembly in the Philippines rose by five percent in 2013 compared to a year ago but the country still lags behind its peers in the Southeast Asian region, according to the ASEAN Automotive Federation (AAF).

Data from AAF showed the Philippines assembled 79,169 motor vehicles in 2013, up from the previous year’s 75,413 units.

For the same period, Thailand assembled a total of 2.457 million units, while Indonesia produced 1.208 million units, Malaysia manufactured 601,407 units and Vietnam made 93,630 units.

As for motor vehicle sales performance, the Philippines was among the lowest in the list of those with assembly operations in the region.

The country sold 181,738 units last year, 16 percent more than the 156,654 units in 2012.

The Philippines was ahead of Vietnam which sold a total of 98,649 units last year, but behind Thailand which had sales of 1.331 million units, Indonesia with 1.230 million units, and Malaysia with 655,793 units.

In terms of production of motorcycles and scooters, while the number of manufactured units in the Philippines climbed year-on-year, it still trailed behind most of its peers in the region.

In 2013, the Philippines assembled 729,480 motorcycles and scooters, a 24 percent increase from the 588,292 units in the previous year.

The Philippines’ motorcycle and scooter output was lower than Indonesia’s 7.780 million units and Thailand’s 2.219 million units last year, but higher compared to Malaysia’s 549,244 units.

Motorcycle and scooter sales in the Philippines grew 7.2 percent to 752,835 units in 2013 from 702,599 units in 2012.

The country’s sales performance was behind Indonesia’s 7.771 million units and Thailand’s 2.004 million units, but ahead of Malaysia’s 546,719 units.

Earlier, local vehicle assemblers said the government needs to release the road map which would contain strategies to support the growth of the automotive industry within the quarter for firms to be able to decide on future investments.

“Major decisions are expected to be made and rollout of the road map by the first quarter of next year will be very crucial,” Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. president Rommel Gutierrez said. –Louella D. Desiderio (The Philippine Star)