Japan Automakers:

 Article Source: https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20221129/p2g/00m/0bu/039000c

Article:

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Major Japanese automakers' combined global output grew 14.4 percent to 2.11 million units in October from a year earlier as parts shortages prompted by the coronavirus pandemic receded, their data showed Tuesday.

Six of the eight automakers, or all but Nissan Motor Co. and Mitsubishi Motors Corp., reported increases in output, although it remains unclear whether they can sustain the uptrend amid a continued shortage of semiconductors and China's COVID-19 lockdowns.

Toyota Motor Corp. said its global output grew 23.0 percent to 771,382 vehicles and its global sales climbed 22.8 percent to 832,373 units in October, both eclipsing the previous year's figures for a third consecutive month.

Ideas:

Automaker's output can sometimes be very cyclical or seasonal, depending on consumer demand, logistical challenges, and now the continued challenges of a shortage of semiconductor and the China situation.

Nissan might still be suffering from the Ghosn situation as they are still trying to work their through what happened.

Mitsubishi isn't the most popular brand out there so who knows why they dropped output.

It's no surprising that Toyota had excellent growth and probably will continue to show sales gains as global sales and constraints begin to decrease.

Article:

Honda Motor Co. saw its October output rise 1.1 percent to 330,002 units, marking a fifth consecutive month of increase. Suzuki Motor Corp. advanced 14.1 percent to 267,337 vehicles on the back of growth in its Indian production.

Subaru Corp.'s output soared 43.1 percent in the month to 88,457 units. The company said the impact of the shortage of parts using computer chips remains, but it has become smaller compared with the previous year.

Nissan's output was down 2.4 percent to 297,801 vehicles, falling below the previous year's output for the first time in four months.

Ideas:

Its very interesting that Japan has able to support eight car companies while the US maybe has three not counting Tesla. But of course the difference between Toyota and Subaru is significant. 

But in most instances, like the airline industry, the larger companies probably have shares of the smaller companies, which provide funds and support to the smaller companies.

A 2.4 percent decrease in output related to Nissan might not seem like much, it is significant for example related to sales projections, profit expectations and shareholders.

Again, as big as Nissan is, it might just be Nissan is still going through a period of re-organization after the Ghosn situation.

But again, carmaker output is not always linear or show growth consistently and again there are many challenges. Perhaps Nissan had some logistics and or supply challenges which slow down production.

Article:

Mitsubishi, whose output in Asia declined, said its global output in October also dropped 17.6 percent to 86,533.

The combined domestic output of the eight automakers climbed 36.1 percent to 655,459 units, while Honda and Mitsubishi reported a decline year-on-year.

Toyota's domestic output expanded 33.7 percent from a year earlier to 203,149 vehicles, while its overseas output rose 19.5 percent to 568,233 units, with Chinese production increasing 18.4 percent and North American production growing 16.2 percent.

Its domestic sales, including those of minivehicles, soared 34.3 percent to 113,723 units, and overseas sales rose 21.2 percent to 718,650 vehicles, with North American sales jumping 26.8 percent. The figures for overseas production and sales were both record highs for October.

Ideas:

Perhaps as supply prices increase along with energy prices, car makers might have had to increases like all companies and as a result, consumer demand might have been as robust as expected.

But overall, it seems output is healthy and significant for most companies. Toyota, continues to lead the pack while Honda and Mitsubishi are lacking behind.

But it must be remember that all car companies in Japan might have different car niches and don't make the same types of cars or trucks or vehicles. 

For example some companies seems to be focused on the smaller box type cars. Some might be focused on electric vehicle type cars. Some might make only special niche market cars or trucks for example for India.

Maybe only Toyota can do everything but the smaller companies such as Subaru and or Mitsubishi focus on very limited niche markets. 

Have a nice day and be safe!