When you think of the most profitable carmakers in the world, you’d immediately think of Toyota or Ford or Hyundai or even Tesla. The thing is, Suzuki is actually the world’s most profitable carmaker according to the consulting firm Ernst & Young (EY).

With profit margins at 11.8 percent in the third quarter, the Japanese small car specialist bested German luxury carmaker BMW which dropped to second place with an 11.4 percent margin during the same period. Suzuki’s operating profits rose to an impressive 374 billion yen or P 180.9 billion.

While BMW is still the world’s most profitable carmaker so far this year, they face a tough time ahead because of the ongoing diesel scandals and more recently, the looming European Union-US trade war.

Meanwhile, Suzuki’s profits have soared thanks to strong demand in developing countries such as China and India. In India alone, profits have risen 68 percent year-on-year so far.

In the Philippines, Suzuki Philippines managed to outpace the entire automotive industry in the first half of 2018 achieving 21.4 percent sales growth. Their tremendous growth has enabled the carmaker to jump to the Number 6 spot in terms of Philippine automotive sales.

The Ertiga continues to be the best-selling Suzuki vehicle with 33 percent share of sales. Celerio, ranks second in terms of Suzuki sales with a 13 percent share. Finally, with a 12 percent sales share, the recently-launched Vitara officially becomes a Suzuki best-seller. They have also recently launched the all-new Swift and Dzire.