Honda Q2 2012 Motorcycle Sales up 12%

Honda’s Q2 report is out (the report is technically Honda’s Q1 fiscal report), and Big Red is showing some positive gains in 2012 thus far. With unit sales up 12% in Q2 2012 over Q2 2011, Honda is also posting a tidy revenue increase of 42% (¥2,435.9 billion, or $31 billion), while net income is also up 315% to ¥131.7 billion ($405 million). Honda doesn’t breakout its consolidated financial report into regional figures, though it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to note that these gains are likely being made primarily in Southeast Asia, and other developing markets.

Closer to home though, things are still on the up-and-up. Honda America reports 59,000 units sold in Q2 2012, up 28% from the 46,000 units it sold during the same time period last year. It should be noted of course that when reading reports from this past quarter that Q2 2011 was weighed-down heavily by the effects of the Tōhoku earthquake and following tsunami.

Honda’s good news is part of a larger trend from JAMA, the Japan Automobile Manufacturer’s Association, which is reporting that motorcycle production in Japan for 2012 is up roughly 5%. The increase is across the board for engine displacements, with even 250cc+ machines (the group’s largest engine displacement category) posting a 12.4% gain. However, for the month of June, Japanese motorcycle production is down nearly 1%, which could become worrisome if the trend continues.

In its report, Honda forecasts making 16.6 million units for its 2012 fiscal year, which is 1.5 million more units than the company sold last year. Meanwhile JAMA lists motorcycle production in Japan between the various manufacturers as the following: Honda 107,695, Suzuki 78,452, Yamaha 91,142, Kawasaki 40,662 – for a total of 317,951 units produced in 2012. The likely distinction between the two figures is the differentiation of “units” and “motorcycles” between Honda and JAMA.

Source: Honda & JAMA