The Auto Writer

Gloomy as the North American market is for many automotive manufacturers, global sales are another thing. With vehicle demand booming in places like India, China, and Russia, some companies experienced a good sales year for 2007, including Mitsubishi.

For the calendar year, Mitsubishi recorded a 7.5% increase in production over the previous year thanks to a 40% boost in production at its Japanese plants. Much of the overall increase came via the introduction of the new Lancer and Outlander models to the European market where sales increased there by more than 61%.

Mitsubishi did not fare so well in Japan where sales dropped by 13.9%, the first decrease in home market sales in two years. Africa, the Middle East, and China along with Europe and North America are the strongest markets for the Japanese automaker.