Japanese Car Exports Down 67.8 Percent In April

Bertel Schmitt
by Bertel Schmitt

Hit by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, exports of Japanese motor vehicles plummeted 67.8 percent from a year earlier in April.This according to data released today by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association. The quake hit all companies, although not equally hard …

Japanese Motor Vehicle Exports April 2011

Apr-10Apr-11DiffTOYOTA150,11831,025-79.3%NISSAN52,26514,642-72.0%MAZDA54,38720,606-62.1%MITSUBISHI27,87819,491-30.1%ISUZU11,9392,770-76.8%DAIHATSU3,594984-72.6%HONDA27,2166,473-76.2%SUBARU29,6828,182-72.4%UD TRUCKS1,472692-53.0%HINO5,6143,069-45.3%SUZUKI24,44417,121-30.0%MITSUBISHI FUSO2,9311,006-65.7%TOTAL391,540126,061-67.8%

In absolute numbers, export-heavy Toyota was hardest hit with a loss of 119,093 vehicles over April 2010. Nissan is a distant, but nonetheless surprising second with a loss of 37,623 units. All in all, the tsunami did cost the Japanese car industry 265,479 cars not exported, compared to April 2010. In dollar terms, the Japanese industry exported $5.9 billion in cars and parts in April, down $5.7 billion or 49 percent. Globally, the Japanese auto industry lost more than 600,000 cars in April.

Bertel Schmitt
Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

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  • Kita Ikki Kita Ikki on May 31, 2011

    We are lucky there is global overcapacity in auto manufacturing.

  • RolandBennet RolandBennet on May 31, 2011

    Is it true that Toyota are launching "Toyota Enemy" to invite anyone to attack their products? I'm not sure how this is supposed to protect their brand from negative publicity...can someone explain?

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