Toshiyuki Shiga, chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA), said that the industry’s prime concern is the excessive appreciation of the yen, adding that it has ‘created an uneven international playing field which very seriously affects production activity here, raising the risk of nothing less than the hollowing out of the industry’.

He added: ‘With that prospect all too close at hand, we request that the new administration not only address the rising yen, move forward with the conclusion of economic partnership agreements and secure a stable electrical power supply, but also take the measures needed to improve the environment for automobile use in Japan, including auto-related tax reform, so as to provide fresh stimulus to the domestic vehicle market.’