Toyota Motor Corp., Japan's biggest automaker, and Nissan Motor Co., the third-largest, led a gain in production among the nation's carmakers in November as government incentives spurred demand.
Toyota's production increased for the second consecutive month, rising 22 percent to 719,362 vehicles from a year earlier, the company said in a statement today. Nissan Motor Co., Japan's third-largest carmaker, built 294,638 vehicles, up 33 percent.
Japan's production was also buoyed by a rebound in industrywide auto sales in the U.S. last month, which rose for the first time since government stimulus measures ended. Japan's domestic sales have benefited from a program that began earlier this year to provide tax incentives to purchase fuel-efficient vehicles.
The production increase benefited from a favorable comparison with last year, when output plunged as the global economy entered a recession.
Industrywide auto sales in the U.S. rose 0.1 percent last month, gaining for the first time since the “cash for clunkers” rebate program ended Aug. 24. A Japanese government program that includes tax cuts and rebates for fuel-efficient vehicles helped boost the country's sales 18 percent last month.
Toyota's Prius hybrid was the top seller among all cars for the sixth consecutive month in November in Japan.
