The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) announced the “Next-Generation Vehicle Strategy 2010.” This is the outcome of discussions by the Study Group on Next-Generation Vehicle Strategy, which was established to formulate Japan’s new strategy for medium- to long-term actions that should be taken by auto and related industries and society in general.

1. Objective and background of strategy formulation

Increasing worldwide interest in global environmental problems and natural resource constraints has compelled the auto industry to further improve fuel efficiency, reduce CO2 emissions, diversify fuel use, and introduce next-generation vehicles to the market on a full-scale basis.

In the mean time, the global auto market has been undergoing diversification. Trends are shifting toward fuel efficiency in the U.S. market, where long-distance travel by large vehicles is in the mainstream, while eco-friendly cars are becoming a more and more preferred choice in the Japanese and EU markets, where there is a strong demand for smaller cars. These indicate the potential increase in the need for vehicles using different power trains to meet different market needs. In emerging markets such as China and India, which are expected to become the world’s largest markets by the end of this fiscal year, low-price small cars are dominant for the time being, but the structure of these markets may change, depending on future economic growth and government policy.

Given the current situation, internal combustion vehicles are projected to remain dominant in the market in the short and medium term, but international competition between next-generation vehicles, such as hybrid and green diesel cars and even electric vehicles, has already intensified. In particular, the market is likely to see much more heated competition in the storage battery sector.

The Japanese auto and related industries have been successful in the global market with their superior technical capacity and have served as Japan’s leading industry to drive the economy and employment. However, with global competition intensifying as explained above, if these industries are to maintain their leading role, they will have to create new industries and cultivate and acquire new markets, while keeping pace with global trends.

To address these issues, the government established the Study Group on Next-Generation Vehicle Strategy to share views on problems associated with technical development and infrastructure building and formulate a national strategy for medium- to long-term actions to be taken by auto and related industries and the entire society.

METI hereby announces the “Next-Generation Vehicle Strategy 2010,” the outcome of discussions by the Study Group on Next-Generation Vehicle Strategy.

2. Summary of the Next-Generation Vehicle Strategy 2010

> Outline of the Next-Generation Vehicle Strategy 2010 (2.57MB)

April 12, 2010

Automobile Division, Manufacturing Industries Bureau