Three big firms duck out of Tokyo auto show

TOKYO: Porsche SE, Daimler AG and Volkswagen AG all sent top executives to April's Shanghai Motor Show as China is set to become the world's largest car market. All three are skipping this week's Tokyo Motor Show.

With the recession slashing global vehicle demand and Japan's car sales headed for the lowest in three decades this year, no major foreign automakers will be represented for the first time in 45 years at the Tokyo event, formerly one of the world's five biggest car shows.

"The Tokyo Motor Show is being snubbed by companies who made a beeline for Shanghai," said Yuuki Sakurai, chief executive officer of Fukoku Capital Management Inc, which manages about 800 billion yen ($8.8 billion).