THE Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors (AVID) last week announced steady growth rates in the third quarter of the year. In a statement, AVID President Fe Perez-Agudo said that the group has posted a 20-percent growth from January to September this year compared to the same period last year.

AVID reported that its sales from January to September reached 21,762 units as compared to the 18,086 units delivered in the first nine months of 2011.

According to the statement, the Passenger Car (PC) and Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) categories “saw positive growth” as PC sales went up by 38 percent, with 12,931 units sold over the three-quarter period as compared to 9,343 units sold within the same duration last year. LCV sales saw a 1-percent rise, from 8,743 units sold in the first nine months of 2011 to 8,831 units sold last year.

“We are proud to remain a bright spot in overall industry performance. Despite the ups and downs of the global economy, the local business and economic environment have kept a steady, upbeat pace, which augurs very well for all AVID members,” Agudo said.

The top three gainers for this year were British United Automobiles Inc. (Mini) with 35 percent, The Covenant Car Co. Inc. (Chevrolet) with 26 percent and Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. with 15 percent.

AVID said that while September sales fell 9 percent year-on-year on the back of supply setbacks in the PC category, LCV sales rose 31 percent to 1,005 units sold, up from 770 units. The group added that sales and economic outlook in the country “remains fundamentally strong despite lingering uncertainty in the US and EU.”

“Backed by favorable economic fundamentals, we are optimistic that our respective markets are more than ready to invest in any of our powerhouse portfolios,” Agudo said.

For its part, the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) posted a 6-percent growth upon ending the third quarter for the year. The group reported 111,582 units sold year-to-date compared to 105,306 units in the first nine months of 2011.

Also, CAMPI said that manufacturers have posted gains in September, noting that they “have made up for lost sales opportunities in August brought about by the heavy monsoon rains.”

“For the month of September, CAMPI tallied 12,856 units, providing great momentum coming into the last quarter of the year,” the group said in a statement. The growth was attributed to the “continued strength that the Philippine economy has shown this year. Moreover, the influx of new model introductions has boosted industry sales.”

The top three performers in CAMPI are Toyota Motor Phils. with a 41.5-percent share of the market, followed by Mitsubishi with 22.3 percent and Honda with 8.3 percent.

CAMPI President Rommel Gutierrez said that he is “very pleased” with CAMPI’s performance in September.

“Manufacturers are back on track and have made up for lost sales opportunities from the previous month. In addition to this, the industry ended the third quarter on a high note, providing momentum for the last quarter of the year,” he said.

Gutierrez added that he is optimistic CAMPI would be achieving its year-end target because of the “country’s positive economic indicators, coupled with the fact that the last quarter of the year is seasonally high in terms of sales.”

“Although industry performance during the start of 2012 was slow due to limitations in supply, the third quarter results have shown otherwise. I am certain that by the end of the year, the industry will outperform last year’s total,” Gutierrez said.