Isuzu Philippines Corp. (IPC), the country’s No. 4 auto brand in terms of sales among assemblers, reported a 19-percent growth in November, propelled by the robust sales of its Isuzu mu-X.
In a statement released on Wednesday, IPC said the sport-utility vehicle (SUV) offering, introduced just in September, turned out to be the firm’s No. 1 seller as it responded to the local automotive market’s demand for a family-oriented, premium SUV.
Latest combined reports by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. and the Truck Manufacturers Association show the all-new Isuzu mu-X registered 532 deliveries in November, compared against 332 in October, or a solid 60.2-percent month-to-date rise.
Due to the market reception of the all-new mu-X, IPC’s total sales spiked by 18.9 percent from 1,377 units in October, to 1,637 units in November.
IPC credited the strong welcome of the Isuzu mu-X as having moderated the slight decline in sales of its other offerings, such as the Isuzu Crosswind AUV and the D-Max pickup.
The Crosswind sold 319 units in November, a 5.6-percent dip from October results, while the D-Max sold 307 units in November, an identical 5.8-percent decline from the previous month. Still, IPC’s total sales of light commercial vehicles (LCVs) rose 16.3 percent in November.
For its commercial vehicle segment, IPC reported a 25.7-percent growth in its truck segment in November, as well.
Year-to-date, the LCV segment, during the 11-month period reached 9,551 units, a 15.3-percent growth over the same period in 2013. From January to November, a prime driver has been the Isuzu D-Max, which showed a 66.3-percent improvement over year-ago levels. Deliveries of the pickup offering totaled 3,493 units
year-to-date, against 2,100 units in 2013.
Also a major factor are IPC’s Category 4 and 5 trucks, which boosted the company’s truck sales total to a 25.5-percent growth with 3,093 units sold from January to November compared to 2,465 units in the same period in 2013.
Overall, the results put IPC at a 17.6-percent growth from last year, or 12,644 units from January to November this year versus 10,749 units from the same months last year, keeping the company on track to achieve its annual sales target.