Luxury cars continue to sell well in PHL, says distributor

Luxury cars continue to sell well in the Philippines despite price increases, according to a distributor of high-end imported cars. Wellington Soong — owner of companies that locally distribute Jaguar, Land Rover, Maserati, and Ferrari — said the sales of these luxury cars totaled 150 units last year, up by 15 percent year-on-year. Land Rover and Jaguar were sold the most, Soong said in an interview with reporters Thursday night. Maserati was introduced in the country only last year, but it is "selling beyond our expectations," he said. Soong is bullish that he could sell more luxury cars this year, saying "there is so much wealth in the country" due to robust money transfers from Filipinos abroad. He said a new Land Rover model — the five-door Range Rover Evoque — would be launched by September. An Evoque would cost P6.5 million to P7.5 million. The businessman said he is also waiting for the arrival of five to seven cars from Italian sports car manufacturer Ferrari S.p.A. before this year ends. Soong explained that domestic prices of luxury cars are increasing as the government raised assessment fees and limited the availment of factory discounts. "We get a 40-percent discount from factory, but we are allowed to get only 20 percent to support the revenue campaign of the government," Soong said. Thus, importation costs tend to rise by about 40 percent, according to him. Soong pointed out that he "cannot give much discount" to buyers. — JE/OMG, GMA News