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Car sales accelerated 21.8% in April on robust demand
By Othel V. Campos
VEHICLE sales jumped 21.8 percent in April from a year ago on strong demand amid improving economic indicators and following the introduction of new models, two industry groups said Monday.
The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. and the Truck Manufacturers Association said in a joint report the local automotive sector continued to regain its footing by improving sales and performance. Members of the two groups sold 30,643 vehicles in April, up from 25,149 units that rolled out of dealerships in the same month in 2022.
“The improving economic indicators which in fact remain favorable until the end of the year according to a government report is an essential metric for the continued growth of the auto industry. At the same time, this is perfectly timed with the market availability of a wider range of motor vehicle models being offered by our members, responding to the growing needs of customers,” said
CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez.
Data showed that passenger car sales increased 16.9 percent in April to 7,317 from 6,259 units sold a year ago, while commercial vehicle sales went up by 23.5 percent to 23,326 from 18,890 units.
This brought total sales in the first four months to 127,927 vehicles, up by 28.1 percent from 99,903 units bought in the same period in 2022.
Passenger car sales went up 30.5 percent in the first four months to 32,070 from 24,582 units a year ago, while commercial vehicle sales increased by 27.3 percent to 95,8577 from 75,321 units.
The two industry groups said, however, that month-on-month sales fell 16.9 percent in April to 30,643 from 36,880 units delivered in March.
Sales of passenger cars decelerated
Vista Land earned P2.7b in first three months
HOMEBUILDER Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. said Monday it posed a net income of P2.7 billion in the first quarter, up 16 percent from the same period last year amid aggressive project launches.
27.25 percent to 7,317 from 10,058 units a month earlier, while commercial vehicle sales registered a decline of 13 percent to 23,326 form 26,822 units.
Gutierrez said the automotive industry remained confident for an upward trajectory following concerted efforts of stakeholders to give the best offers through new models, better promos and solid after-sales service to clients.
“As the economic outlook remains favorable, the auto industry is optimistic to attain full recovery from the pandemic-induced challenges—wellpositioned to grow to significant levels, even higher than the pre-pandemic figures. It is worth noting that the industry has already recorded this growth trajectory in the past four months compared with the 2019 levels,” Gutierrez said.
Vista Land said in a statement consolidated revenues climbed 8 percent in the first quarter to P9.2 billion from a year earlier. Vista Land launched P10.4 billion worth of projects across the country in the three-month period as demand for housing projects remains strong.
“We are pleased with our performance for the first quarter of the year due to our efficiencies and higher margin for the period. Our project pipeline has been robust coming from last year’s P40.4 billion project launch and another P10.4 billion for the first quarter of 2023,” Vista Land chairman Manuel Villar Jr. said.
“We are looking at launching more projects this year as we have seen sustained growth from our overseas Filipinos as well as domestic buyers which brought about the 11-percent increase in reservations sales to P18.6 billion for the quarter,” he said. Jenniffer B. Austria
JG Summit raising capex budget to P73b in 2023
CONGLOMERATE JG Summit Holdings Inc. said Monday it budgeted P73 billion for 2023 capital expenditures, slightly higher than P71 billion it invested last year as the group remains cautiously optimistic amid the lingering geopolitical and global economic risks.
JG Summit president and chief executive Lance Gokongwei said during the company’s annual stockholders meeting the group is hopeful that domestic consumption will remain buoyant as inflation is forecasted to slowly ease on a sequential basis.
“While the market is pricing slower GDP expansion in 2023 relative to 7.6 percent in 2022, everyone agrees that consumption remains quite strong. This is on the back of unrestricted mobility, the 100 percent return to school middle income tax cuts and expected recession in inflation,” Gokongwei said.
Gokongwei said the group sees strong underlying demand for its food business, while it expects sustained recovery of its malls, hotels and other property businesses. The reopening of China is also expected to boost the group’s airline and petrochemical operations.
“All in all, I think 2023 is much better year for the group. That is why we are investing P73 billion in capital expenditures for 2023,” he said. Jenniffer B. Austria
Alliance Global’s profit rose 20% to P4.7b in Q1
SAFE CONSTRUCTION. Aboitiz Construction Inc. achieves a milestone of one million safe man-hours without lost-time injury for their project in Parañaque City. The project involved the construction of a 26,000-square-meter warehouse and office buildings for LBC Express from June 2021 to April 2023. To promote and ensure site safety, ACI regularly conducts emergency response drills, safety awareness sessions, toolbox meetings and site inspections and audits. The soon-to-be-completed Parañaque hub is the largest warehouse facility of LBC Express by far. Once finished, it will make for more efficient logistics and parcel delivery across the world.
