Sales of imported vehicles, including those produced by Japanese manufacturers, rose 2.4 percent in October from a year earlier to 18,133 units, an industry body said Monday.

Sales of foreign-brand vehicles increased 3.5 percent to 16,348 units, while those of Japanese brands dropped 6.6 percent to 1,785 units, the Japan Automobile Importers Association said.

The October figures brought cumulative sales of imported vehicles, including Japanese-made ones, in the first 10 months of the year to 218,376 units, down 2.1 percent from a year earlier.