TOKYO: Japanese automobile sales soared in March, data showed Monday, a year after domestic demand plummeted in the wake of the country's quake-tsunami disaster.
Sales of new vehicles with engines above 660cc stood at 497,959 in March, up 78.2 percent from the same month a year earlier, and marking the seventh consecutive monthly rise, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said.
The figures, also boosted by government subsidies for eco-friendly vehicles, include large vehicles such as lorries and buses as well as cars.
New vehicle purchases slumped 37.0 percent in March 2011 in the wake of the natural disasters, but have since staged a recovery with rises of 31.9 percent in February and 40.7 percent in January.
January was the first complete month of sales after Tokyo re-introduced subsidies for eco-friendly vehicles that can cut thousands of dollars from their price tags, in a move aimed at boosting the domestic automobile industry.
Japanese automakers were last year pummeled by the march 11 disasters and subsequent nuclear crisis as well as record flooding in Thailand, which disrupted their supply chains.
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