Support the Local Auto Industry

[jpdm]

Smuggling threatens PH auto industry roadmap

MANILA — The country’s expanding middle-income population and billion dollars of annual remittances from overseas Filipino workers boost potential of our auto industry.

At the same time, industry experts indicate that the third wave of motorization in the region is expected to take place between 2015 and 2022.
All such potential will be difficult to realize if smuggling and issues of importing second-hand vehicles are not resolved swiftly.

A recent study by Philippine Institute for Development Studies Senior Research Fellow Rafaelita Aldaba reveals smuggling and importation of used vehicles impede growth of the country’s auto industry.

Murky policy environment, discrepancy of statistics on registered motor vehicles and revenue losses in the industry are also discussed in the study which reflects government’s lackluster effort to curb car smuggling.

Aldaba noted traders use free ports and other special economic zones to bring in used cars to avoid paying the correct duties and taxes.
Smuggled vehicles are priced 30 to 50 percent lower than their new counterparts and present stiff competition to the domestic auto industry.

The study showed significant data gap in number of registered vehicles and auto sales between LTO and Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines (CAMPI).

In 2009, for example, LTO’s new registered motor vehicles totaled 182,589 while CAMPI’s record of domestic sales showed a total of only 132,444 motor vehicles or a gap of 27 percent.

source: Smuggling threatens PH auto industry roadmap - ZamboTimes

[niky]

Old news. And outdated. The "smuggling" was legitimate importation allowed by the non-closure of the TRO filed against EO 156, which banned importation of surplus vehicles. Proof of this is the huge fees collected by the Bureau of Customs in CEZA from the importers.

And if they bothered to track data to the latest year we have full data for, which is 2011, they'll note the discrepancy has gone down from 50k plus vehicles to 30k.

The low price of brand new vehicles and the maturing market is killing Freeport imports. Or was, until the SC's ruling earlier this year banned them completely. Sellers of local secondhands are complaining how tight the market is now due to the plethora of cheap brand new cars, low-down schemes and low-interest bank loans.

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The government could allow surplus cars without hurting the local industry. How? Simple. Base taxes on the vehicle's brand-new extrapolated value instead of their current book value. That way the price difference to local secondhands disappears completely.

Of course, that makes too much sense, so it was never really going to happen.

[jpdm]

Toyota bags tax perks for P2-billion assembly of new Vios, jacks up production target



By: Ben Arnold O. De Vera, InterAksyon.com
July 8, 2013 4:19 PM

Photo by Ben Arnold O. De Vera

MANILA - The Philippine unit of Japanese carmaker Toyota is jacking up its output by almost a fifth after it spent P2 billion for the local assembly of the third-generation Vios.

At today’s ceremonial roll-off of the all-new, third-generation Vios, Toyota Motor Philippines Corp (TMPC) president Michinobu Sugata said production this year will hit 36,300 units, up 19 percent from 30,500 last year.

The investment for the new-generation Vios secured tax and other incentives from the Board of Investments (BOI) as a pioneer project under the 2011 Investment Priorities Plan (IPP).

TMPC plans to assemble 14,594 units of the all-new Vios until yearend. Production of the new model began last June 26.

“With production of the new Vios, we will make the auto industry fired up on all cylinders,” Sugata said.

He said the Vios is the top-selling vehicle in the country with 16,517 units sold last year or almost a tenth of the industry sales of over 182,000.

TMPC vice president Roque Rommel T. Gutierrez told reporters that sales of the all-new Vios are expected to jump to 2,000 a month from the previous variant’s monthly sales of 1,400. The new Vios is now available at Toyota dealerships nationwide, he said.

The third-generation Vios, however, will be more expensive with a starting price of P723,000 per unit or about P20,000 more than that of second-generation units.

The Philippines is the second Asean country to assemble the all-new Vios after Thailand—Toyota’s production base in Southeast Asia. Vios production in the Philippines started in 2004.

Double local content next year

The biggest assembler as well as seller of vehicles in the country, TMPC also plans to double the local content of the Vios model to 40 percent by next year.

TMPC sourced 265 parts and components or about a fifth of those used to assemble the all-new Vios from local vehicle parts makers belonging to the Toyota Suppliers Club. The previous Vios variant had only 230 locally sourced parts.

Sugata said the company plans to further increase the number of locally sourced parts to over 300. For one, the underutilized press plant will be used to localize the stamping or shaping of 15 parts such as door, floor and roof, among others, by July next year, he said.

Gutierrez said they are also looking at sourcing bulky parts from domestic manufacturers. Sourcing more parts from local makers will slash logistics and importation costs, he said.

source: Toyota bags tax perks for P2-billion assembly of new Vios, jacks up production target - InterAksyon.com

[jpdm]

Sweeet!

Mitsubishi Motors to build 2nd plant in PH - report



ABS-CBNnews.com
Posted at 08/23/2013 9:20 AM | Updated as of 08/23/2013 9:20 AM

MANILA, Philippines - Mitsubishi Motors is planning to build a second automobile plant in the Philippines by 2015, according to a report by Nikkei.

Nikkei reported the plant is estimated to cost around 20 billion Japanese yen (roughly $202 million or P8.93 billion).

The new plant will churn out an annual 100,000 subcompacts, SUVs and other models by 2017.

Mitsubishi Motors Philippines currently has a plant in Cainta, which started operations in 1964. The plant currently has a production capacity of 15,000 units per year on one shift.

source: Mitsubishi Motors to build 2nd plant in PH - report | ABS-CBN News

[jpdm]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ctive_View.jpg



Isuzu PH introduces All-New Isuzu D-MAX



ABS-CBNnews.com
Posted at 09/18/2013 7:37 PM | Updated as of 09/18/2013 8:54 PM

"Isuzu Philippines is optimistic over the prospects of the All-New D-MAX pickup. Its arrival not only means that the Filipino market will get a product that adheres to global standards of excellence, but also that the[SIZE="3"] vehicle will contribute to the growth of the Philippine automotive manufacturing sector,"[/SIZE] Izumina said

The All-New D-MAX will be built at IPC’s world-class manufacturing plant at the Laguna Technopark in Biñan, with assembly to start in the next few months. This ensures continued job security for the Filipino workforce, a move that is in line with IPC’s commitment to strengthen the Philippine automotive industry and the domestic economy. At present, 90% of Isuzu models, including the Crosswind AUV and truck and bus models, are assembled locally.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...52288139,d.aGc

[jpdm]

Isuzu invests P100 M to boost D-Max production line



By Louella D. Desiderio
(The Philippine Star)
| Updated September 19, 2013

MANILA, Philippines - Isuzu Philippines Corp. (IPC) is investing between P60 million up to P100 million to enhance its production assembly line as it intends to manufacture the new D-Max pick-up.


IPC executive vice president Takashi Tomita said in a press conference for the launch of the new D-Max pick-up yesterday the firm is currently spending “around P60 to P80 million to strengthen the production line.”

Isuzu invests P100 M to boost D-Max production line | Business, News, The Philippine Star | philstar.com

[jpdm]

The supposedly auto road map of the Aquino admin was reject by Pnoy himself. So another year of no concrete auto program for the Noynoy Aquino regime.

[jpdm]

During the meeting with PEZA, TMP president Michinobu Sugata also gave an update on auto industry issues and requested for continued support from the Government, especially as the auto industry awaits the implementation of the new auto policy.

Sugata shared that Toyota Motor Corporation (Japan) recognizes the potential of automotive manufacturing in the Philippines and the Roadmap initiated by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will be an important factor in Toyota’s medium-term local production strategy.

In this light, Sugata appealed to De Lima regarding updates on the proposed high-level DTI and PEZA visit to Japanese auto suppliers as a follow-up activity to the Automotive Investment Seminar held in Japan last March 2013.

The said seminar in Japan generated interest in the Philippines as a potential alternative auto parts production base in ASEAN. The Toyota Group believes that DTI and PEZA follow through activities with suppliers will support the forthcoming new auto policy.

Sugata also expressed support to Cong. Rufus Rodriguez’ House Bill (HB) 390 (Automotive Manufacturing Act) which was identified as one of the priority bills by the House Committee on Trade and Industry.

Sugata expressed hope for HB 390 saying, “A legislated industry program is an important factor for long-term investment planning.”

Toyota Group suppliers target $1-B in exports
by Bernie Magkilat
December 12, 2013

Manila Bulletin | Latest Breaking News | News Philippines | Archive | Trade

[jpdm]

Isuzu PHL to ‘localize’ assembly of D-Max


Top News
20 Jan 2014
Written by Catherine N. Pillas

Isuzu Philippines Corp. is seeking to fully localize the assembly of its newest vehicle bid in the sport-utility division.

“The first few units of our new D-Max pickup are CBUs [completely built-up units]. However, we have invested in local production since last year, and now it’s a combination of CBUs and locally assembled units. In a few months, we want to fully localize the assembly,” Arthur D. Balmadrid, Isuzu Philippines Corp. senior vice president, said at the sidelines of the 2013 Dealership of the Year Awards held last Friday.

Balmadrid revealed an investment of more than P60 million in facilities, but added there is an ongoing investment as the company makes the move to fully localize production.

According to the vice president, although the move would not necessarily translate to new jobs, the current work force would be maintained or would not be downsized, which would occur if all units were brought into the country as CBUs.

“Ninety percent of our products are locally produced, only about 10 percent of our total volume are CBUs, so we want to continue being labor-intensive,” Balmadrid said.

According to a report by the Philippine Automotive Competitiveness Council (Pacci)—which counts Isuzu Philippines as a member—the industry road map it submitted to the Department of Trade and Industry in November 2012 said one of its strategic objectives is to secure a better market share for locally manufactured vehicles.

The road map noted that the expansion of the local market has mostly been enjoyed by imported CBUs. CKDs, or completely knocked-down vehicles, on the other hand, refer to automobiles whose parts are imported but are assembled in the country.

Pacci reported in the industry road map that CKDs have fallen from some 90 percent in 1995 to 39 percent in 2011, and is advocating for domestic manufacturers to reverse the trend and gain a viable share of the market.

BusinessMirror - Isuzu PHL to ?localize? assembly of D-Max

[jpdm]

Mitsubishi buys Ford’s abandoned Laguna plant
Japanese firm plans to expand production in PH


(edited)

By Ben O. de Vera
Philippine Daily Inquirer
12:04 am | Tuesday, April 1st, 2014

Japanese automotive giant Mitsubishi has acquired the manufacturing facility that American carmaker Ford shut down last year, in line with plans to expand the former’s vehicle assembly operations in the Philippines.

Next year, Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. (MMPC) will transfer its operations to Ford Philippines’ former plant and will abandon its current 18-hectare Cainta, Rizal facility.

“Recognizing the sustained growth in the economy and the coming age of motorization in the Philippines, MMPC acquires the 21-hectare closed manufacturing plant of Ford Motor Co. Philippines situated in Greenfield Automotive Park in Sta. Rosa Laguna. The acquisition of the plant is part of Mitsubishi Motor Corp.’s (MMC of Japan) strategy to further strengthen MMPC’s role of expanding sales and production capacity which is part of its new stage of growth mid-term plan until the end of 2016 fiscal year,” MMPC said in a statement Monday.


“MMPC plans to relocate to this new site and start vehicle production by January 2015,” the company added.
In a telephone interview, MMPC vice president for marketing services Froilan G. Dytianquin said all operations, including marketing and sales, would be transferred to the bigger Laguna site.

All of the about 800 employees will be retained, and as the larger facility means there could eventually be more production, more people will be hired, Dytianquin said.


MMC and MMPC are now studying what additional models can be assembled in the Sta. Rosa factory, as part of the companies’ commitment to expand operations in the Philippines, Dytianquin said.

“The acquisition of the Sta. Rosa factory will further strengthen our assembly operations, utilizing heavy stamping machines, advanced equipment and facilities engineering that will support MMC’s business objectives for the new mid-term business plan,” MMPC president and chief executive officer Hikasaburo Shibata said.

The Cainta facility has an annual capacity of 30,000 units but only 15,000 vehicles were assembled there last year. MMPC assembles the Adventure, Lancer EX and L300 being units sold locally, while the other models are imported from Japan and Thailand.

Read more: Mitsubishi buys Ford?s abandoned Laguna plant | Inquirer Business
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