Sales of imported automobiles, including overseas models made by Japanese automakers, grew 5.5 percent in May from a year earlier to 20,606 units, snapping a five-month decline, an industry body said Monday.
Sales of foreign-brand imported cars alone jumped 13.2 percent to 19,246 units, climbing for a fourth consecutive month, the Japan Automobile Importers Association said.
JAIA spokesman Yasuhiko Yokota attributed the rebound in overall sales mainly to a 30.5 percent surge in sales of BMWs, especially the restyled 3 Series sedans.
Another factor was strong sales of Mercedes-Benz's new CLS-Class, A-Class and E-Class sedans, as well as various campaigns for low-interest loans prior to the June bonus season, Yokota said.
Still, cumulative sales of all imported vehicles in the first five months of the year slipped 3.4 percent to 106,876 units.
This was mainly due to falling sales of Toyota's Avensis sedans and station wagons, which the automaker has been importing from its British factories since autumn 2003, Yokota said.
Volkswagen beat Mercedes-Benz to become the top-selling brand in May on the strength of its restyled Golf GT1. Volkswagen accounted for 19.99 percent of the import car market, selling 4,119 units, up 8.6 percent over the previous year.
Mercedes-Benz fell to second place with a share of 17.47 percent on sales of 3,600 units, up 14.2 percent.