New models seen giving a boost to '08 vehicle sales
New models seen giving a boost to '08 vehicle sales Bloomberg Domestic vehicle sales may rise this year as carmakers introduce new models, the country's automobile dealers group said. Vehicle sales excluding minicars may be higher than the 3.43 million sold in 2007, Yoichi Amano, chairman of the Japan Automobile Dealers Association, said Monday in Tokyo. Vehicle sales fell to the lowest in 35 years in 2007 as declining wages and a shrinking population cut demand for automobiles. Toyota Motor Corp. introduced a new version of its Crown sedan earlier this month and Honda Motor Co. brought out a new version of its Fit compact, the country's best-selling car, in October. Nissan forecasts gain Nissan Motor Co. forecast its sales in China will rise 11 percent this year as it introduces new car models. The company expects to sell 500,000 vehicles in the country this year, including light commercial vehicles, compared with 450,000 last year, it said in a statement Monday. The carmaker will introduce three Nissan-brand vehicles in the world's fastest-growing major car market this year, starting with the Qashqai sport utility vehicle in March. Last month, the company brought out the Infiniti M35 sedan in an effort to win customers from Daimler AG and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG.