TOKYO, Apr 2 (NNN-NHK) – New car sales in Japan decreased for the third straight year in fiscal 2021, down 9.5 percent, compared to a year earlier, due to slowed production on shortages of semiconductors and other components, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
A total of 4,215,826 vehicles were sold in fiscal 2021, which ended Thursday, according to the Japan Automobile Dealers Association and the Japan Light Motor Vehicle and Motorcycle Association.
Domestic auto sales, excluding mini vehicles, plummeted 8.2 percent to 2,660,855 units, logging the second lowest since data became available in fiscal 1968.
Toyota Motor Corp. sold 1,313,913 units, down 9.7 percent year on year. The COVID-19 pandemic’s impact in Southeast Asia forced the company to scramble for parts and temporarily reduce domestic production to a large extent.
Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. posted declines of 3.4 percent and 1.1 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, Mazda Motor Corp. logged a 15.4 percent plunge in selling, with Subaru Corp. losing 14.2 percent.
Sales of mini vehicles tumbled 11.5 percent to 1,554,971 units, in fiscal 2021, the lowest on record in 24 years.
Daihatsu Motor Co., Toyota’s minicar subsidiary, sold 506,436 units in fiscal 2021, down 7.8 percent, while Suzuki Motor Corp.’s selling, shed 12.8 percent to stand at 470,498 units.– NNN-NHK
