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Tag - used-cars

 
 

USED CARS

Carro, which is backed by SoftBank Group, is also considering a second listing in Singapore.
BUSINESS
Jun 23, 2026
SoftBank-backed car marketplace Carro is said to explore U.S. IPO
Carro is working with advisers and may potentially raise as much as $500 million.
Farooq Soban, a Pakistani resident of Ebetsu, Hokkaido, points to damage from a fire that destroyed a local mosque in the city, on April 29.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Jun 1, 2026
Mosque fire shows need for better communication with foreign residents
The fire in Ebetsu, Hokkaido, exposed the need for deeper cooperation between Japanese and Pakistani residents on a broad range of issues.
Bags containing methamphetamine within a shipping container. A 53-year-old Pakistani used-car dealer has been arrested by Tokyo police on suspicion of concealing stimulants in 18 of 742 bags of white powder used as a cosmetic that were found in a container from the United Arab Emirates.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Apr 7, 2026
Pakistani man arrested on suspicion of smuggling 270kg of stimulants into Japan
The 53-year-old Pakistani used-car dealer has been detained with five others for alleged smuggling the drugs, worth about ?14.3 billion, from the United Arab Emirates.
An employee points at a "sold out" sticker at a used-car export complex in Incheon, South Korea.
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 25, 2026
Lamborghinis stranded in Sri Lanka as war disrupts Asia¡¯s used-car trade
Japan and South Korea exported a combined $19 billion worth of used cars last year, with Japan accounting for a little ?more than half of that.
A container truck is loaded with used cars at a used-car export complex in Incheon, South Korea, on Aug. 12.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 30, 2025
South Korea¡¯s surge in used-car exports softens impact of U.S. tariffs
South Korea exported $5.5 billion cars in August, up 9% from a year earlier and the highest monthly total on record. Used car exports jumped 35% to $711.5 million the same month.
Used cars are sold at high prices at a dealership in Nagoya as a surge in export demand has reduced supply on the domestic market.
BUSINESS / Companies / Regional voices: Chubu
Sep 2, 2024
Japanese businesses grapple with exchange rate swings
For the used car sector, the weaker yen has resulted in buyers being forced to pay higher prices due to increased export demand.
Wecars President and CEO Shinjiro Tanaka (center) at a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday
BUSINESS / Companies
May 1, 2024
New firm formed to take over Bigmotor¡¯s operations
Wecars took over around 250 outlets and some 4,200 employees from Bigmotor, and its board of directors does not include former members of Bigmotor¡¯s board.
A Bigmotor outlet in Tama, Tokyo, in September
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 6, 2024
Itochu announces turnaround support for Bigmotor
Itochu is considering investing ?20 billion in a new company to take over Bigmotor¡¯s key assets.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Jan 31, 2024
First Bigmotor employee arrested over alleged removal of roadside trees
Toshiyuki Kamohara, 51, is believed to have instructed staff at the company¡¯s Kawasaki outlet to cut down trees near the store.
Sompo Holdings' Kengo Sakurada is planning to step down as the company's CEO at the end of March.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 23, 2024
Sompo Holdings¡¯ CEO to resign over handling of Bigmotor wrongdoing
The Financial Services Agency has ended its on-site inspections of Sompo Holdings and Sompo Japan and is expected to issue business improvement orders.
Subsidies in China turned the country into an electric vehicle giant but produced weed-infested graveyards of abandoned EVs.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 25, 2023
No one wants used EVs, making new ones a tougher sell too
In the $1.2 trillion secondhand market, prices for battery-powered cars are falling faster than for their combustion-engine cousins.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 14, 2023
FSA to revoke Bigmotor¡¯s registration as insurance agent
The planned penalty follows an investigation into widespread acts at Bigmotor of deliberately damaging customers¡¯ vehicles to pad insurance claims.
A used KIA electric car is seen for sale outside the showroom of a used car dealer in Manchester, Britain
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 23, 2023
The battery test race to work out what used EVs are really worth
There used to be no way to measure battery health. But that is changing as firms rush to scale up EV battery tests ¡ª some of which take just minutes.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 20, 2023
Transport ministry moves to punish Bigmotor outlets over fraud
Violations by the used car chain have included overcharging customers for inspection and maintenance fees.
BUSINESS
Oct 11, 2023
Panel raps Sompo Japan¡¯s resumption of business with Bigmotor
The report said the resumption of business was caused by concerns among Sompo Japan execs about possibly losing deals with Bigmotor to rivals.
Secondhand Toyota cars on sale in Moscow in July 2016
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 3, 2023
Japan puts the brakes on lucrative used-car trade with Russia
While wiping out Russia¡¯s biggest source of used cars, sanctions have driven down prices for secondhand cars in Japan.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Sep 19, 2023
Watchdog starts on-site probe of Bigmotor and Sompo Japan
The investigation aims to dig deeper into the insurance fraud scandal by the leading used-car dealer. The probe is likely to take several months.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Crime & Legal
Aug 28, 2023
Car thefts on the rise in Japan as vehicle prices remain high
Cases of car theft increased last year for the first time in almost a decade, with Aichi the most affected prefecture, and are still rising rapidly.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 31, 2023
Bigmotor suspected of fabricating insurance contracts
The news came on top of an investigation report that showed employees padded maintenance fee claims to insurance firms by deliberately damaging cars.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 28, 2023
Transport ministry conducts on-site probe of Bigmotor amid scandal
The surprise inspection, which covered dealerships in 24 prefectures, came after the ministry interviewed Bigmotor executives including newly appointed President Shinji Izumi on Wednesday.

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon

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