When the US imposed a 25 per cent tariff on imported Japanese cars, the expectation had been higher sticker prices for US consumers and falling sales. The assumption was that the added costs to exporters would inevitably be passed down the line. Yet, months into the policy, the outcome has proven far less dramatic.
当美国对进口日本汽车征收25%的关税时，人们原本预期美国消费者看到的标价将会上涨，销量将会下降。人们的假设是，出口商的额外成本将不可避免地被转嫁。然而，该政策实施数月后，结果已被证明远远没有那么戏剧性。
Japanese automakers’ US sales have shown surprising resilience. Toyota, for example, hit a global sales record in May, with North America sales up more than a tenth. Part of that is thanks to their local US production.
日本汽车制造商在美国的销量表现出令人惊讶的韧性。例如，丰田(Toyota) 5月创下全球销量纪录，其中北美销量增长逾十分之一。这在一定程度上得益于其在美国本土生产的策略。
Behind the stable sales figures, export data tells a more troubling story. In May, the number of vehicles shipped to the US declined by just 3.9 per cent, according to official data. When export value is divided by the number of units sold, the average price per vehicle drops to about ¥3.5mn, or $24,000, roughly a fifth less than the previous year. By total value, Japan’s vehicle exports to the US fell by nearly a quarter.
在稳定的销量数据背后，出口数据揭示了更令人担忧的情况。官方数据显示，5月向美国发运的汽车数量仅下降3.9%。将出口总值除以销量，每辆车的平均价格降至约350万日元，合2.4万美元，比上年下降约五分之一。按总价值计算，日本对美汽车出口下降了近四分之一。