Japan's Sales of Imported Autos Slipped 0.5% in July

TOKYO -- Dow Jones reported that the pace of on-year decline in sales of imported cars, trucks and buses in Japan eased in July to 0.5%, the Japan Automobile Importers Association said Tuesday.

Sales fell 3.1% in June.

The fall was also milder than the 5.8% decline in overall sales of new cars, including both Japan-made and imported autos, in July.

Despite the relative strength of imported car sales, a spokesman at the association said "the current situation doesn't allow for optimism, given falls in such leading brands as Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo."

He noted there were two more business days in July this year than last year. Without the extra days, passenger car sales would have fallen, instead of rising 0.6%, the spokesman said.

There was firm demand, however, for imported cars in the middle-sized sedan segment, which Japanese carmakers have left without new models recently, he said. Japanese carmakers have been increasingly focusing on compact cars and minivans.

Sales of BMW, Peugeot and Alfa Romeo cars enjoyed rises in July, with the BMW 3-series and the Peugeot "307" hatchback making strong contributions to sales gains, the association spokesman said.