Japan domestic auto sales hit 38-year-low
Friday, 3 April 2009
TOKYO, Apr 2 (AFP): Domestic new auto sales in recession-hit Japan dropped to a 38-year low in just-ended fiscal year 2008, an industry body said Wednesday, piling more pressure onto the ailing sector.
The Japan Automobile Dealers Association said 2,891,901 new cars, buses and trucks were sold in Japan in the year to March 31 -- down 15.6 per cent from a year ago, and the sixth annual fall in a row.
It was the lowest level since fiscal 1970, when Japanese motorists bought 2,859,847 vehicles, the association said.
The high cost of owning and maintaining a vehicle has discouraged the Japanese public, particularly in cities, from buying cars in recent years.
The trend has pushed Japanese automakers to rely on overseas markets for growth, but the global economic downturn has forced them to slash jobs and production as they brace for drastic earnings falls or losses.
The Japan Automobile Dealers Association said 2,891,901 new cars, buses and trucks were sold in Japan in the year to March 31 -- down 15.6 per cent from a year ago, and the sixth annual fall in a row.
It was the lowest level since fiscal 1970, when Japanese motorists bought 2,859,847 vehicles, the association said.
The high cost of owning and maintaining a vehicle has discouraged the Japanese public, particularly in cities, from buying cars in recent years.
The trend has pushed Japanese automakers to rely on overseas markets for growth, but the global economic downturn has forced them to slash jobs and production as they brace for drastic earnings falls or losses.