AUTOMOTIVE Hyundai’s sales down 5% in Jan

Manila – Declining sales is still evident in the first month of the year, according to Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. (HARI), the Korean-brand’s local distributor. HARI reported Monday that vehicle sales in January 2019 fell by 5 percent to 2,758 units from 2,903 units in the same month in 2018.

It noted that headwinds that hit the economy last year are still affecting the market’s decision to buy big-ticket items like cars.

This can be reflected in the sales of passenger cars last month, which declined to 1,443 units from 2,036 units in January last year. Passenger cars accounted for 52 percent of HARI sales in the local market. On the other hand, light commercial vehicle segment sold a total of 1,315 units in the previous month, increasing by 51.7 percent from January 2018’s sales of 867 units. HARI attributed the upbeat sales of light commercial vehicles to Hyundai Kona and the strong demand for its light truck model H-100. The Korean car brand’s distributor here remains optimistic, however, about improving the sales of its passenger car segment later in the year, supported by models such as the New Accent and Reina.