MAZDA Motor Corp, one-third owned by Ford Motor Co, led a drop in Japanese auto sales in June, as rising costs for gasoline and food lowered demand for new cars.
Sales of cars, trucks and buses fell 3.6 percent to 281,261 from a year earlier, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said yesterday. The total excludes minicars.
Household spending in Japan fell 3.2 percent in May, the most since September 2006. Gasoline prices rose to a record 173 yen a liter (US$7.4 a gallon) in June, according to the Tokyo-based Oil Information Center.
"People simply don't have the money to buy right now," said Daisuke Shimazu, an investment manager at Sumitomo Trust Banking Co in Tokyo, which has about US$200 billion in assets. "Rising prices have led to steep drops in consumption and autos are part of that trend."
Stagnant wages and a shrinking population also dragged down Japan's vehicle sales, excluding minicars, to the lowest in 35 years last year, reported Bloomberg News.
Car sales, including minicars, will likely fall 1.2 percent for a fourth straight decline this year to about 5.32 million units, according to the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association.
Toyota Motor Corp's sales, excluding the Lexus brand, rose 0.5 percent to 124,866 vehicles in June. Honda Motor Co, Japan's second-largest car maker, reported a 4.1-percent increase in sales to 35,415 vehicles. Both makers have introduced new models this year.
Sales at Nissan Motor Co, the third-largest, dropped 3.9 percent to 49,046 vehicles. Mazda's sales slumped 12.2 percent.
Toyota shares rose 0.8 percent to 5,050 yen (US$47.69) at 2:32pm in Tokyo Stock Exchange trading yesterday. Honda rose 1.1 percent to 3,650 yen and Nissan fell 1.1 percent to 867 yen.
Japanese auto makers are introducing new cars and minivans in the domestic market to spur buyer interest. Toyota, Honda and Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd have all introduced minivans in the past two months to boost sales.
Toyota, which plans to raise domestic sales by 0.6 percent to 1.6 million vehicles this year, unveiled the revamped Alphard and Vellfire minivans in May.