Domestic sales of new motor vehicles fell slightly in July for the first time in three months on a year-on-year basis, reflecting continuing sluggish consumer spending, an industry body said Tuesday.
The sales of new cars, trucks and buses, excluding minivehicles, totaled 369,159 units in the month, down 0.9 percent from a year earlier, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said.
"New vehicle sales have been seesawing since the beginning of the year. We have yet to see a full-fledged recovery in consumer spending," an association official said.
Sales of passenger cars, which have recently helped boost demand, fell 1.5 percent to 265,488 units. Of them, sales of cars with engine capacities of 2,000cc or more were down 1.6 percent to 65,531 units, the first drop in 10 months. Sales of smaller cars also fell, down 1.9 percent to 199,957 units.
Sales of trucks, however, posted a 0.8 percent rise to 102,566 units, although the pace of growth slowed from an average 140,000-150,000 units recorded during the past few months, the association said. Sales of buses fell 2.9 percent to 1,105 units.
Toyota Motor Corp., Japan's top automaker, boosted sales by 6.5 percent to 161,184 units, while Honda Motor Co. marked a 16.7 percent rise to 38,363 units.
However, sales at Nissan Motor Co. fell 18.6 percent to 67,246 units and those of Mazda Motor Corp. were down 4.1 percent to 23,962 units.
Sales at Mitsubishi Motor Corp., a company at the center of a scandal over recalled vehicles, gained 3.5 percent to 28,419 units.