Japanese domestic sales of passenger electric vehicles (EVs) fell for a 13th straight month in November, mostly because of lower demand for domestic brand EVs.
Sales totalled 5,041 units in November, down by 22pc from a year earlier, according to data from three industry groups — the Automobile Dealers Association, the Japan Light Motor Vehicle and Motorcycle Association and the Japan Automobile Importers Association (JAIA). Sales were up by 17pc on the month.
EVs accounted for 1.5pc of Japan's total domestic car passenger sales in November, down by 0.4 percentage points from a year earlier.
The fall in EV sales was mostly attributed to lower sales of Nissan's Sakura, one of the domestic producer's top selling EV models. Sakura sales fell sharply by 37pc on the year to 1,731 units.
Sales of foreign brand passenger EVs were stable on the year at 2,184 units. Reduced deliveries from German manufacturer Volkswagen continued to weigh on supply, but new EV models from German producer BMW and Mercedes lifted demand for imported EVs, a representative from the JAIA told Argus.
Foreign EV sales are likely to increase on the month in December, as the last month of the year typically records higher sales compared to other months, the JAIA representative added.
Imported EVs accounted for 43pc of the country's total passenger EV sales in November.
