Performance and Drivers
Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. (HARI), the official distributor of Hyundai vehicles in the Philippines, recorded 2,521 unit sales for the month of April—a feat considering there were fewer working days within said month. This pushed total January to April 2017 sales to 11,362 units, up by 9% as compared to the 10,417 units sold in the first four months of the previous year.
Leading HARI’s impressive performance is the Passenger Cars (PC) segment, which grew by 10% from 7,073 units in January to April of 2016 to 7,753 units in the same period of 2017. Driving the PC segment growth is the Hyundai Accent as it remains as the brand’s top-selling nameplate with 5,162 units sold in the first four months of 2017.
The Light Commercial Vehicles (LCV) segment also showed remarkable performance as total January to April sales reached 3,609 units, an 8% rise from the previous year’s output. Faster than anticipated growth in this segment is buoyed by high acquisition of Tucson and H-100 models.
Sales and Economic Outlook
The Philippine economic outlook remains sanguine, with several banking institutions and credit agencies projecting GDP growth rate to fall between 6.5% to 7.5% for FY 2017. The economy is expected to maintain its upward trajectory, bolstered by the country’s strong domestic demand, within-target domestic inflation, stable OFW remittances, accelerated government spending, and the recovery of export numbers. The confluence of these factors bodes well for the auto industry as they serve as tailwinds for increased auto demand. With this, HARI is well in position to achieve more milestones to cap its 15th year of operations in the Philippines.
