LONDON (Kyodo) Battered by the global economic downturn, Japan's automakers are finding life difficult in the European market as competitors old and new pile on the pressure, according to industry analysts.

While at the lower end of the market, they are being undercut by the likes of the South Korean maker Kia, the manufacturers are facing formidable marques such as Ford and Volkswagen, which are working hard to woo European consumers with good design and technology, the experts said.

They noted that many of the Japanese manufacturers have also failed to fully take advantage of the various car-scrapping programs that have been introduced by European governments to stimulate demand.