The month-on-month sales of local assemblers recovered in September as the government eased lockdown measures in Metro Manila.

Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) reported Monday that the industry group’s sales in September jumped by 37 percent to 24,523 units from 17,906 units in August.

“CAMPI remains optimistic that the automotive sector will recover until the end of the year amid the new normal environment as the industry posted double-digit growth of 37 percent in September,” CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said.

Both passenger cars and commercial vehicle segments grew month-on-month by 56.9 percent and 28.2 percent in September, respectively.

“Demands for new cars posted double-digits growth on all vehicle categories except trucks and buses. But we are still cautious that consumer spending is below pre-pandemic levels due to the evident shifts to essential goods and services,” Gutierrez added.

However, compared to 2019 figures, September 2020 sales declined by 22.9 percent from 31,820 units last year.

The year-to-date sales also decreased by 44.6 percent from 267,364 units from January to September 2019 from this year’s 148,012 units.

Current market leaders remain to be Toyota, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Suzuki, and Ford. (PNA)