MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. (HARI), the official distributor of Hyundai vehicles in the Philippines, started 2018 with a modest 3% growth from 2,817 units sold in January 2017 to 2,903 units in the same month of 2018. The Korean brand’s performance can be considered quite a feat considering it is the initial month since automotive taxes have been restructured.
“January’s performance provides a jumpstart to 2018. Though faced with a tougher business landscape, we expect this year to bring us on higher grounds as we continue to level up our commitment in providing the best products and services to our customers,” said Fe Perez-Agudo, HARI president and chief executive.
The Passenger Cars (PC) segment had 2,036 units sold for January. While Accent and Eon still uphold the largest share of HARI’s PC segment, Elantra substantially grew by 113% with unit sales of 219 this January from 103 units sold last January 2017. The PC segment is HARI’s top segment with 70% contribution to HARI’s sales this January 2018. Meanwhile, Light Commercial Vehicles (LCV) segment drove the growth for HARI’s January sales. It recorded 867 units from 594 units sold last year of the same month – this is a substantial growth of 46%. Grand Starex is the top-selling brand for the LCV segment, which also grew at a record-high of 184% this January with 329 units sold. Moreover, Tucson and Grand Santa Fe are also upbeat with its sales growth of 104% and 279% respectively.
Sales and economic outlook
The economy continues to grow with government spending as the primary growth driver due to its infrastructure drive. The improvement on highways and structures opens more opportunities for the automotive industry. Moreover, opportunities also arise from the the increased Disposable Income (DI) of individuals brought by the recently implemented tax reform. Strong consumption and growing economy positively affect the industry in general. This progress is an opportunity that HARI seizes to further grow its business and continue getting good numbers for the year.
