Japan bans Russian exports
The Japanese government has cut off its country’s used-car exports to Russia citing trade data and market participants.
The world’s leading used-vehicle exporter initially banned the export of luxury vehicles and heavy trucks to Russia after Ukraine was invaded last year.
In August, Tokyo expanded the ban to include new and used cars with fossil-fuel engines above 1.9 litres – as well as hybrids and electric vehicles – in alignment with EU sanctions.
The new ban drove down prices for second-hand vehicles in Japan and forced brokers to seek out destinations other than Russia, according to Reuters.
Before introducing the sanctions, Japan accounted for more than half of the 303,000 used cars exported to Russia between January and August this year, according to Russian analytical agency Autostat.
It is estimated Japanese used-car sales were on-track to top US$1.9 billion in 2023 before the Russian backchannel was suspended.
SV Alliance, a used-car export company whose profits boomed following the invasion of Ukraine, told Reuters it saw a 70 per cent decline in business after the ban.
Russia’s demand for used Japanese cars, including Toyotas, Hondas and Nissans, surged after global marques suspended their Russian operations after the outbreak of war in February 2023.
