Market rankings among Japan's top five forklift manufacturers for 2005 remained unchanged, a Japanese newspaper reported.

According to Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Toyota Industries Corp (42.4 per cent), Komatsu Forklift (19.5 per cent), Nippon Yusoki (11.5 per cent), TCM (7.6 per cent) and Nissan Motor (7.5 per cent) were the top five Japanese forklift manufacturers in 2005.

Last year, Japanese forklift sales jumped 8.6 per cent to 81,970 units. The report said the increase was due to strong demand for forklifts in industrial plants and logistics facilities, following a business pickup.

Komatsu Forklift Co and TCM Corp lost 0.2 per cent and 0.6 per cent market share respectively after shifting their focus to overseas markets, the report said. Forklift sales overseas were said to yield higher profit margins.

Battery-powered forklift sales increased 11.8 per cent to 38,178 units and Toyota Industries Corp and Nichiyu forklift manufacturer Nippon Yusoki Co led in battery-powered forklift production.