Japan Automobile Sales Surge In December

Monthly automobile sales in Japan surged by more than 20% in December, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said. Automobile sales in Japan, excluding 660cc minivehicles, jumped 23.5% to 221,960 vehicles. Sales at Toyota Motor Corp

, excluding the Lexus brand, gained 22.0%. However, sales at Nissan Motor Co

jumped 37.2%. Honda Motor Co

reported a 6.3% rise in sales. Sales in the 2011 calendar year dipped 16.7% to 2,689,074 vehicles.