Japanese automakers' overseas car production volume 2012-2021

In 2021, Japanese automakers manufactured around 16.46 million vehicles at production facilities outside of Japan, increasing from 15.38 million in the previous year. This was more than double the domestic production. The leading region was Asia, assembling almost two in three overseas produced vehicles.

Trends in overseas production

Japanese carmakers whose overseas production exceeds a million vehicles per year are Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and Suzuki, manufacturing more automobiles overseas than domestically. A large share of production divides itself among China, South-East Asia, and North America, which are at the same time the primary markets (apart from Japan). In the future, production might shift further towards less-regulated markets, as Europe becomes more and more difficult to supply due to environmental restrictions. Few Japanese manufacturers, like Toyota, count on plug-in hybrids or battery electric vehicles, which the continent will presumably need to attain its emission targets.

Emission targets and automotive electrification in Japan

Japan had to top up its reduction target of emissions up to 46 percent by 2030 (compared to 2013) to maintain on track for carbon neutrality by 2050. As automobiles account for roughly 16 percent of Japan‘s carbon emissions the Government consulted with the domestic automobile industry and announced that all new passenger cars sold domestically should be electrified by 2035. Electrified cars, particularly hybrid vehicles (HV), already account for a large share of new sales today.