Overview of Japan’s Automobile Exports in the Past 10 Years

In 2021, total exports of new vehicles, used vehicles and KD kits (calculated as 1 kit = 1 vehicle) increased by 4.7% year-on-year to 5,007,458 units. Exports of new vehicles, whose production was delayed due to shortages of parts such as semiconductors, decreased slightly by 1.4% year-on-year to 3,534,373 units, of which passenger vehicles, which account for more than 90% of all exports, went down by 3.4% year-on-year to 3,255,864 units. Exports of cargo vehicles rose 47.2% year-on-year to 225,179 units due to rising transportation demand driven by the recovery of economic activity from the coronavirus pandemic. On the other hand, bus exports dropped 12.2% year-on-year to 53,330 units due to the slow improvement of the tourism industry. Exports of used vehicles went up 15.3% year-on-year to 1,224,761 units driven by the supply shortage of new vehicles. Along with the economic recovery, factory operations resumed thanks to the lifting of lockdowns around the world, resulting in an 80.8% year-on-year rise in KD kit exports to 248,324 sets.