Car, motorcycle production down from January to September

by Louella Desiderio (The Philippine Star), 10 Nov 2020

MANILA, Philippines — Local vehicle and motorcycle production and sales were down from January to September, with demand still affected by the pandemic.

Data from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Automotive Federation (AAF) showed the Philippines assembled 46,628 motor vehicles in the nine-month period, down 31.4 percent from 67,922 units in the same period last year.

Almost all countries in the ASEAN covered by the AAF data registered lower motor vehicle output as of end-September, except for Myanmar which manufactured 11,927 units, a 2.9 percent uptick from the 11,589 units a year ago.

Other countries which saw their motor vehicle output drop for the January to September period are Indonesia (-49.3 percent), Thailand (-38.8 percent), Malaysia (-25.8 percent), and Vietnam (-19.9 percent).

Total motor vehicle output in the ASEAN fell by 39 percent to 1.92 million units in the nine-month period from the previous year’s 3.16 million units.

In terms of motor vehicle sales, most countries in the ASEAN saw dips in the January to September period.

As of end-September, the Philippines sold 148,012 units, down 44.6 percent from the 267,364 units a year ago.

Other countries with reduced motor vehicle sales in the nine-month period are Indonesia (-50.7 percent), Singapore (-44.4 percent), Thailand (-29.8 percent), Malaysia (-22.9 percent), and Vietnam (-22.2 percent).

Those with higher motor vehicle sales in the January to September period are Brunei (11.6 percent) and Myanmar (5.9 percent).

ASEAN sold a total of 1.64 million motor vehicles as of end-September, 35.7 percent lower than the 2.55 million units last year.

AAF data showed all ASEAN countries covered by the report produced fewer motorcycles and scooters as of end-September.

Philippine motorcycle output contracted by 53.8 percent to 411,143 units in the January to September period from 890,370 units a year ago.

Thailand’s motorcycle output slid 23.5 percent, while Malaysia’s fell 19.4 percent in the nine-month period.

Motorcycles assembled in the ASEAN reached 1.85 million units as of end-September, a 32.7 percent reduction from the previous year’s 2.75 million units.

Similar to motorcycle output, motorcycle sales in all ASEAN countries covered by the AAF data decreased from January to September.

Philippine motorcycle sales slipped by 35.5 percent to 807,020 units in the nine-month period from 1.25 million units last year.

Posting the biggest decline in motorcycle sales as of end-September was Singapore (-48 percent).

Malaysia’s motorcycle sales were down 16.8 percent, while Thailand’s dipped 13.7 percent in the January to September period.

Total motorcycle sales in ASEAN fell 23.4 percent to 2.29 million units in the nine-month period from 2.99 million units a year ago.

Last month, Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. president Rommel Gutierrez said the group is optimistic of recovery until the end of the year, but also mindful of consumer spending which is still below pre-pandemic levels.