Report From Japan
REPORT FROM JAPAN
W.B.SWIM
JAPAN'S TOP SIX manufacturers rolled more than 770,000 motorcycles off the assembly line during the six-month AprilSeptember period of 1962.
Honda was way out in front of the field, with 564,109. Production figures of other top makers included: Suzuki, 88,978; Yamaha, 69,797; Tohatsu, 26,632; Pointer, 13,311; and Miyata, 8,062. Of these, 445,795 were more than 50cc and the other 325,090 were 50cc or smaller.
With the major races out of the way, local enthusiasts in Japan have thrown themselves and their equipment wholeheartedly into the smaller winter events. Leading off was the Third Ikoma Technical Run, a trial type of event, held Nov. 11. Japan's four top makers split honors pretty evenly, with Tohatsu sweeping all five places in the 50cc event, Honda taking the 200cc and Yamaha winning the over 200cc. Suzuki racked up seconds in both the large events.
Honda is offering 9,000,000 shares of common stock on the U.S. market. The shares are priced at $1.00 each. Sales are expected to begin in December, after U.S. government approval is obtained.
Honda stocks have had a somewhat scattered history on the Japanese stock market, with wide swings between high and low prices. They are currently quoted at around 330-335. Highs and lows since the stock was first listed on the Japanese market in 1954 are: 1954, 349-100; 1955, 345-150; 1956, 385-195; 1957, 485-148; 1958, 383-190; 1959, 1070-307; 1960, 1350-371; and 1961, 897 (before capital increase) and 455-175. The high this year was 379 in July and the low 198 in January.
The Japanese stock market dropped heavily in 1960, and Honda plunged from 1350 down to the 800s before increasing capital in 1961, which cut the price of stock about in half. American investors buying Honda stocks will be offered American Depositary Receipts (ADR) in 20-share lots.
Hap Jones, of the Hap Jones Distributing Company in San Francisco, recently spent two weeks in Japan with his wife, Rose. While there he negotiated and signed a new long-range contract with Tohatsu. Expect to see more and more of these machines on the road all over the U.S. The Hap Jones Distributing Company is the distributor of Tohatsu motorcycles in the United States. He also visited the NGK spark plug factory and made arrangements for an increased advertising campaign in the U.S.
The First All-Japan Championship Road Races held at the brand new $5,000,000 Suzuka Circuit Nov. 3 and 4. The four races Saturday were held in hard, driving rain and high wind, keeping both the novices and seniors from really showing their stuff, what with lakes of three-inch deep water to ford and a terrifically slippery river of slimy red clay mud coursing across the track at one point.
The 50cc and 250cc races for senior entrants, however, proved well worth the trouble and expense of going to the track. These were real Grand Prix thrills.
Thirteen 50cc machines took off in a mass run-and-bump start. First out of the corner was 1962 50cc World Champion Ernst Degner of West Germany, with all but two who had trouble getting their temperamental engines to kick over bunched right behind him.
Experience proved the master. Honda's veteran Tommy Robb, who had been content all the way with third, was across the line in front by not over ten feet. Aussie Anderson (Suzuki) was second, followed by Morishita (Suzuki), Suzuki (Suzuki) and Taniguchi (Honda).
The times tell the story. Less than one second separated the first and fifth places! For the 60.04 kilometers, Robb clocked 31 min. 01.4 sec., Anderson 31 min. 01.6 sec., Morishita 31 min. 01.9 sec.
