In Brief : Japan Vehicle Exports Drop Again

Japan’s exports of cars, trucks and buses declined for the third consecutive year in 1988, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Assn. said today.

The association said 1988 exports totaled 6.1 million vehicles, down 3.2% from 1987.

Association spokesman Akira Nakayama attributed the decline to a 12.6% decrease in sales to the United States, which imported 2,695,836 Japanese vehicles, or 44.1% of Japan’s total motor vehicle exports.

He said the yen’s rise against the U.S. dollar made the Japanese cars more expensive and less competitive in the United States. In addition, Japanese car makers produced 869,556 cars in the United States last year, some in joint ventures with U.S. makers, up 18.2% from the previous year, Nakayama noted.

Japan’s total vehicle exports declined 1.9% in 1986 and 4.5% in 1987. Since September, 1985, the yen has climbed from 240 yen to one U.S. dollar to less than 130 yen. Nakayama said 1988 exports included 4,431,888 passenger cars, down 1.7%; 1,626,576 trucks, down 7.7%, and 45,688 buses, up 29.9% from 1987.

He said Japan exported 2,051,319 passenger cars to the United States, down 7.0%; 644,514 trucks, down 26.8%, and three buses, an increase of two.