Foreign Brands Capture a Record 9% of Japan’s Car Market
Foreign-brand passenger vehicles captured a record-high 9% of the Japanese domestic car market in the fiscal year ended March 31, the Japan Automobile Importers Assn. reports.
#economics
Foreign-brand passenger vehicles captured a record-high 9% of the Japanese domestic car market in the fiscal year ended March 31, the Japan Automobile Importers Assn. reports.
Unit sales rose 2% to 303,900 vehicles, marking their third consecutive year of growth. Volume was second only to the all-time record set in fiscal 1996. JAIA says demand was propelled in part by rising consumer interest in SUV/crossovers and diesels.
The trade group attributes some of the gains to consumer backlash to scandals last autumn involving falsified safety inspections by Nissan and Subaru. The lapse prompted Japan’s transport ministry in October to order all Japanese car manufacturers to verify that they were meeting government inspection rules.
Last year’s best-selling import brands were Mercedes-Benz (68,400 units), BMW (51,300) and Volkswagen (48,200), according to JAIA.
RELATED CONTENT
-
Mazda, CARB and PSA North America: Car Talk
The Center for Automotive Research (CAR) Management Briefing Seminars, an annual event, was held last week in Traverse City, Michigan.
-
On Quantum Navigation, EVs, Auto Industry Sales and more
Sandia’s quantum navi, three things about EVs, transporting iron ore in an EV during the winter, going underwater in an EV (OK, it is a sub), state of the UK auto industry (sad), why the Big Three likes Big Vehicles, and the future of logistics.
-
Inside Ford
On this edition of “Autoline After Hours” Joann Muller, Detroit bureau chief for Forbes, provides insights into what she’s learned about Ford, insights that are amplified on the show by our other panelists, Stephanie Brinley, principal analyst at IHS Markit who specializes in the auto industry, and Todd Lassa, Detroit Bureau Chief for Automobile.