KIA.COM/PH/

KIA PHILIPPINES is eyeing to sell 6,000 automotive units in 2022 as the country continues its economic recovery.

Emmanuel A. Aligada, Kia Philippines president, said during the virtual launch of the all-new Kia Carnival on Thursday that 2022 will be a better year overall for the company after it sold 3,748 units in 2021.

“We are confident that 2022 will be much better. Therefore, we are looking at about 6,000 brand-new units sold this year,” he said.

Mr. Aligada disclosed that Kia Philippines is seeking to improve its market share to 1.7% in 2022 from 1.3% last year.

He expects the main volume drivers for Kia Philippines to be Stonic, Soluto, and K2500. Other models seen to drive sales this year are Seltos and Carnival.

“2021 was an encouraging period for us as we delivered a 76% growth rate,” Mr. Aligada said. “We move to improve, this time, on our market share to 1.7%.”

“As things normalize, we see that happening very soon and continuing beyond 2022,” he added.

Mr. Aligada said Kia Philippines is also expanding its network with seven new dealerships in 2022, which will bring its overall count in the country to 46 branches. The company also plans to improve its existing facilities this year.

He added that the company is planning to have 50 operating dealerships by 2023.

“That is the number that we think is significant for us to have presence in key areas all over the country,” Mr. Aligada said.

Mr. Aligada also disclosed that the pending free trade agreement (FTA) between the Philippines and South Korea will allow Kia to be competitive.

“We are waiting for that to be finalized and formalized probably in the next few weeks, within the quarter likely. The tariff benefit that it provides us is that it benefits our offers for the vehicles that we carry. It will make us very competitive while keeping the same level of quality for the vehicles that we source from Korea,” Mr. Aligada said.

“That’s a good sign for us to be more active in the market because of that 5% that we would be able to save on tax. A good number of our vehicles are sourced from Korea and together with other goods that would benefit from this treaty agreement, yes, we look forward to being more competitive,” he added.

In October last year, the Trade department announced that it had concluded talks for the FTA involving the Philippines and South Korea.

Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said the FTA would help in the economic recovery of the Philippines.

“This will stimulate trade and hopefully allow for more investments from Korea providing avenues for Korean companies and industries to diversify and expand their economic interests in other Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, which is in line with the promotion of Korea’s New Southern Policy,” Mr. Lopez said.

Kia Philippines also announced during the virtual launch that the SX variant of its all-new Carnival is already available in dealerships while the EX variant will be available next month.

The EX variant is priced at P2.54 million for the Astra Blue color and P2.55 million for pearl colors, while the SX variant is priced at P2.988 million for the Astra Blue color and P2.998 million for pearl colors. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

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