Japanese Car Makers Domestic Output Falls

TOKYO January 25, 2004; Yoshio Takahashi writing for Dow Jones reported that Honda Motor Co. said Monday its domestic car output in December fell 11.2% from a year earlier to 101,591 vehicles, falling for the 11th consecutive month, as the carmaker's domestic sales continue to slow.

Mazda Motor Corp. said the same day that its domestic output in December rose 15% from a year ago to 67,411 vehicles.

For 2003, Honda's production at home fell 15.5% to 1.17 million vehicles and Mazda's output for last year rose 3.6% to 801,084 vehicles.

Honda's domestic output for 2003 fell on year for the first time since 1999.

Its overseas output for last year rose 18.8% to 1.80 million vehicles and its exports in 2003 declined 2.1% to 465,653 vehicles, reflecting robust overseas sales and a shift in production to plants outside Japan.

The company's global production in 2003 topped the previous year's record, totaling 2.97 million vehicles, up 2.4%.

Domestic sales at the carmaker in 2003 were down 18.6% at 734,982 vehicles mainly because sales of the "Fit" compact softened after the robust sales the previous year. Annual domestic sales fell for the first time since 1998.

The Japanese car maker said last month that it aims to boost domestic sales to 800,000 vehicles this year with strong sales of recently launched new models such as its "Life" mini-vehicle and "Odyssey" minivan.

In December, Honda's sales in Japan shrank 19.8% to 61,379 vehicles, exports were down 1.6% at 42,963 vehicles and overseas production increased 31.9% to 138,008 vehicles.

Mazda's annual domestic production rose for the second straight year last year, reflecting brisk sales at home.

Its domestic sales rose 5.6% to 277,689 vehicles, rising on year for the first time since 1997 thanks to brisk sales of the "Demio" compact and the "Atenza" sedan that the company launched in 2002.

In December, Mazda's exports increased 38.8% to 56,192 vehicles and its domestic sales were up 3.5% at 17,961 vehicles. Overseas production in the month fell 3.3% to 20,640 vehicles.