Japan's domestic sales of new cars, trucks and buses increased 7.2% from a year earlier in April, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said on Monday. Sales totaled 212,713 vehicles in April, the association was cited by Market Watch. Separately, sales of minicars with an engine displacement of up to 660 cc fell 7.5% year-on-year in April to 112,035 vehicles, the Japan Light Motor Vehicle and Motorcycle Association said. Auto sales, as measured by registrations of vehicles with the government, are monitored by economists since they are the first consumer spending numbers released each month. In South Korea, sales of five automakers dropped 7.2% in April from a year earlier, driven mostly by weaker demand from overseas markets, industry data showed on Monday, Yonhap News Agency reported. In particular, two domestic auto giants—Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp.—led the downward trend with their foreign business hurt by tough market situations. According to the data provided by each company, their combined sales, also including GM Korea Co., Renault Samsung Motors Co. and Ssangyong Motor Co., came to 740,036 units in April, down from the previous year's 797,727.
