Sales in Japan of imported vehicles, including those built abroad by Japanese automakers, fell 10.5% in fiscal 2014 from the year before to 324,087, an industry body said Monday.
Sales declined for the first time in five years as the consumption tax hike in April 2014 depressed consumer spending on big-ticket items like vehicles, according to Japan's (Kyodo) News Agency.
Sales of foreign-brand vehicles slipped 6.7% to 281,766 units, while those of Japanese-brand vehicles dropped 29.5% to 42,321, the Japan Automobile Importers Association said.