New-Vehicle Sales in Japan Drop to 30-Year Low

5 July 2007

Nikkei. New-vehicle sales in Japan fell 7.4% to 2.84 million units for the first six months of 2007, a second straight year-to-year interim decline, according to the Japan Automobile Dealers Association.

Sales of registered vehicles, excluding mini-vehicles, totaled 1.78 million units for the first half, down 10.5% to a 30-year low. The figure plunged 15.1% for subcompacts, which account for about half of the vehicle sales in this category.

For the first time in four years, sales of mini-vehicles—models with engines of 660cc or smaller displacement—declined on the year. In June, registered-vehicle sales fell for the 24th consecutive month, with mini-vehicle sales slipping for a third month in a row.