TOKYO (AP) -- Honda Motor Co. said Tuesday it is cutting production in Japan and North America by an additional 50,000 vehicles amid a severe slump in global sales.
Japan's No. 2 automaker said output in North America will fall by 29,000 units, affecting Honda's three plants in the region -- Ontario, Canada; Marysville/East Liberty, Ohio; and Lincoln, Alabama. Due to the production cuts, Honda's overall output in North America will drop by 12 percent to 1.26 million units in the current fiscal year ending March 31.
"Amid a severe economic slowdown, our sales remained sluggish," Honda spokeswoman Yasuko Matsuura said. "We have to adjust our production accordingly. We have yet to see a recovery in the auto market."
The Ontario plant makes the popular Civic, while the Ohio and Alabama factories roll out the Accord sedan and Odyssey minivan.
Honda will also cut domestic production by a further 21,000 units. As a result, Honda's output in Japan will now stand at 1.15 million units, down 12 percent year-on-year.
Like other Japanese automakers, Honda is being battered by the plunge in global auto demand after the U.S. financial crisis struck last year.
It quit Formula One racing in December to focus on its core business of making and selling cars. Honda is also putting 4,300 contract staff out of work in Japan by the end of April.
Honda did not disclose full-time work force in North America. Honda employs 185,000 full-time people around the world.