Domestic production of cars, trucks and buses rose for the first time in two years, with 10.26 million being produced in 2002, up 4.9 percent from the previous year, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association said Tuesday.

Output for cars rose 6.2 percent to 8.62 million units, for the first increase in two years, while that for buses jumped 14.2 percent to 66,321 units for the third straight yearly increase.

However, production of trucks slipped 1.8 percent to 1.57 million units.

In December alone, total output of cars, trucks and buses stood at 824,423 units, up 12.9 percent from a year earlier, marking the sixth straight month of year-on-year increase.

Production of cars came to 703,569 units, up 15.3 percent, and that of buses was up 40.1 percent to 5,967, but that of trucks dropped 0.5 percent to 114,887.