After ending 2016 strong by breaching the one million sales mark for the first time, the Motorcycle Development Program Participants Association, Inc. (MDPPA) achieves another win by recording 13 percent year-on-year sales growth in the first half (H1) of 2017. MDPPA is on track to achieve its motorcycle sales forecast of 8 percent to 12 percent increase for this year.

MDPPA, the Philippines’ premier motorcycle manufacturers association whose members include Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha, and Kymco, capped H1 2017 with a total of 613,896 motorcycle units sold, a 13 percent increase from 544,788 total units sold during the same period last year.

The association is confident of maintaining the strong sales momentum for the rest of the year to match the growing market demand. Greater mobility and affordability are the factors that continue to drive this increase in motorcycle sales, according to MDPPA President Armando B. Reyes.

“Besides the good economy and more people having increased purchasing power, the strong market performance for the first six months of 2017 reflects the continued bullish demand for motorcycles. This is because motorcycles provide a practical and effective transportation alternative in the face of the worsening traffic conditions, particularly in Metro Manila. They are also very trendy and cost-efficient,” Reyes added.

The moped or utility motorcycle type remains the top-selling category for the first half of this year with a total of 203,741 units sold.

Business motorcycles were the second-highest performers with 202,098 units sold. Sales in this category climbed by 18 percent from the 170,979 sales volume achieved during the same period last year.

The booming e-commerce industry in the country is spurring demand for business motorcycles, according to the MDPPA. As online businesses continue to increase, more business motorcycles will be used for the delivery of products and goods. The trend for staying at home and just ordering food, water, clothes and other necessities has also fueled sales of business motorcycles, which are used as delivery vehicles.


The automatic transmission (AT) type recorded the biggest sales growth with a 40 percent increase over H1 2016 sales volume. Total sales of automatic motorcycles in H1 2017 totaled 175,707, a significant jump from 125,552 AT motorcycles sold during the first six months of last year.

The MDPPA attributes the bullish performance of AT motorcycles to ease of use and convenience. A growing number of new models also feature sleek and trendy designs to cater to younger users.

Other motorcycle types such as big bikes, three-wheelers and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) recorded up to 25 percent sales growth. Total sales in this category reached 1,080 units compared with only 865 units sold in H1 2016.

Meanwhile, sales of street motorcycles dipped by 25 percent in terms of total units sold. Sales in this category dropped to 31,270 units in H1 2017 from the 41,659 units sold in H1 2016.

Indonesia still recorded the highest motorcycle sales volume at 2,321,079 for the first half of the year. Its sales performance, however, dropped by 10 percent from 2,565,452 units sold during the same period last year.

The Philippines achieved the biggest sales volume growth in the ASEAN region, posting a 13 percent year-on-year increase for H1 2017. Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand all had 7 percent increase in sales.

“Compared with other Southeast Asian markets, the Philippine market is not yet saturated, thus providing many investment opportunities. The expanding Filipino middle-class segment sees motorcycles as efficient and cost-effective for both personal and business needs. In line with this, many businesses see the need for more motorcycles, specifically the business model type, for their delivery services,” Reyes said.