The global vehicle production of five out of eight major Japanese automakers fell year on year in January due mainly to a significant dent in output in China.

Nissan has reported a drop of 25 percent from the same month last year. Subaru and Honda's outputs sagged by over 20 percent. Mazda and Mitsubishi each saw a 6-percent decline.

Automakers attribute the declines to chip shortages as well as suspensions of operations in China due to a spike in coronavirus infections and the Chinese New Year holidays.

But Toyota, Suzuki and Daihatsu reported year-on-year increases. Toyota's production also fell in China, but officials say the drop was more than offset by increases elsewhere. They also say that's a rebound from last year, when production was often halted at plants in Japan and abroad due to chip shortages.