Mazda boosted first nine month sales 2.9% to JPY2,622,558m but operating profit plunged 44.4% to JPY59,560m.

Mazda said this was due to an increase in marketing expense due to the intensifying competition and exchange rate impact which offset increased sales and cost improvement.

Discover B2B Marketing That Performs

Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.

Find out more

Net income fell 56.4% to JPY37bn, reflecting factors such as income taxes of JPY40.3bn.

The automaker delivered 1,170,000 units around the world during the nine-month period.

As in first half of the fiscal year, the ASEAN region saw the highest increase in vehicle sales, up 26% to 104,000 and Japan contributed to the growth with a 7% lift to 150,000 units.

North America sold 320,000 units, maintaining a stable level year-on-year.

Sales in Europe were 196,000 units, up 2%, with strong growth continuing in Spain with 16,000 vehicles sold (+10%) and the UK with 25,000 units (6%).

Sales in Europe were driven by the ageing 2 and recently updated CX-5, up 8% and 15% respectively.

The full year forecast of global sales volume is now 1,569,000 (previously 1,617,000) and operating profit JPY80bn (JPY70bn) with net income up to JPY55bn from JPY50bn.

Mazda is currently launching the redesigned 3 revealed at the Los Angeles Motor Show in November 2018 and will continue with the new CX-4 crossover, previously a China-only model, launching at the Geneva show in March.