NEW YORK: Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. saw their sales of new automobiles in the United States in April down more than 50 percent from a year earlier, with demand eroded by the coronavirus pandemic, their US subsidiaries said Friday.

Toyota's new auto sales in the country came to 84,694 units, down 53.9 percent, an even faster decline than the fall of 36.9 percent it logged in March.

Honda's sales plunged 54.1 percent to 57,751 units, also down for the second consecutive month.

At Toyota, sales of the RAV4 sport utility vehicle were down 55.5 percent at 15,208 units, and those of the Camry sedan down 62.3 percent at 11,020 units.

Meanwhile, the leading Japanese automaker's sales of pickup trucks showed a slower decline, with sales of the Tacoma truck down 30.4 percent at 14,187 units.

Honda saw sales of the CR-V sport utility vehicle slump 57.0 percent to 12,201 units and the Accord sedan drop 54.0 percent to 8,851 units.

"There will be challenging days ahead," Steven Center, vice president of Automobile Sales at American Honda Motor Co., said in a statement.

"But with consumer traffic beginning to increase online and at Honda and Acura dealerships, we are approaching the coming weeks with guarded optimism," he added.

JIJI Press