Who would have thought that a virus would affect the price of a used car?
In a Asahi Shinbum (major Japanese newspaper) article, the price change of used vehicles in Japan has increased by 18.8%, from a year earlier. A USS auction representative told the reporter “Every model is in short supply”. People want to avoid other people, NOT use the train, so were looking to drive to work and other places. Also contracts that were usually given up after a year were extended.
Some of our buyers have experienced the same problem. Cars bought easily at a certain price in the past have gone UP in price. Not the best news for buyers in the auctions at the moment. However, due to the lack of new cars for sale in Japan, there is often no choice but to pay the market price, which means charging more at the country of arrival for the customer.
USED CAR PRICES HAVE GONE UP! Oh dear.
