A study conducted by the Japanese Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) has found that 70 percent of Japanese vehicles sold in the the United States were built in factories located in North America.
JAMA concluded that more than 400,000 jobs in the U.S. have been created by Japanese automakers over the last 25 years, of which 50,000 are factory positions while the bulk of the remainder are dealership related. In all, Japanese brands had 29 U.S. auto factories in 2010, representing a combined investment of $34 billion.
Japanese automakers have traditionally built compact vehicles in North America to guard their slim profit margins against the vicissitudes of exchange rates, but recent years have seen the production of more premium vehicles like the upcoming Infiniti JX crossover migrating stateside. Japanese brands have also been exporting more vehicles from the United States – 2010 saw 145,000 vehicles heading from North America to global markets, an increase of 50,000 vehicles from the prior year.
In the coming years, the fluctuating yen will likely cause Japanese automakers to further localize production, resulting in more factories and jobs in Canada, Mexico and the U.S.
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1.’70% of Japanese…’ view
