Japanese Auto Industry Sees Slack Sales in First Half of Year

07/22/96

Despite strong demand in Japan for recreational vehicles, Japanese carmakers did not see any improvements in overall sales. Weak demand for sedans and poor exports (down 2.5% from the previous year) have been blamed for the slump. Overall Japanese auto production for the six month period was down 4.3% from a year earlier (5.08 million total vehicles). Among Japanese manufacturers, Toyota's production was down 0.5% (1.67 million vehicles) while Nissan's was reported to have dropped 7.7% (795,043 vehicles).

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel