Japan's imported vehicle sales up 29.6 pct in October

• Source: Xinhua
• [08:53 November 08 2010]
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Sales of new imported vehicles in Japan, including those made by Japanese manufacturers abroad, increased 29.6 percent in October from a year earlier, the Japan Automobile Importers Association said in a report on Friday.

According to the association, sales in the recording period totaled 14,766 units with Nissan holding the top spot rising 17 percent on year, with sales of 2,968 units and Volkswagen coming in second with sales of 2,512 units, a rise of 3.8 percent on year in October

BMW took the third spot with sales of 2,040 units, up 10.0 percent on year

Separately, Toyota Motor Corp.'s Prius hybrid remained Japan's top-selling car for the 17th successive month in October, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association and the Japan Mini Vehicle Association said on Friday.

Despite the expiration of the government's subsidy program and tax breaks for eco-friendly vehicles, Toyota's flagship hybrid sold 21,769 units with the industry body citing a backlog of orders as contributing to the fuel-efficient Prius' healthy sales in October.

The industry bodies reported that Suzuki Motor Corp.'s WagonR minivan was the second-placed seller, totaling 15,175 units, followed by Honda Motor Co.'s Fit compact city car, which sold 14, 034 units in October.