Increased demand from car buyers led Japanese automakers to ramp up production in May, a sign that consumer confidence is returning. If the economic turnaround has drivers thinking about spending the money to buy a new car, they would do well to look at the used car market in order to find deals as the economy recovers.

All five of the major Japanese automakers reported an increase in production in May as opposed to last year. According to the Associated Press, Toyota produced the most units, at 637,675, although it also grew the least as compared to last year with a 27 percent increase.

Conversely, Mitsubishi posted an 85.8 percent increase as compared to last year, but also produced the fewest amount of cars, with 83,418. Honda, Nissan, and Mazda all saw growth of around 45 percent.

The automakers all agreed that an increase in demand, especially in the American and Asian markets, led to the surge in production.

This trend has also continued around the world, with Mercedes-Benz and BMW recently reporting that they were increasing production to respond to consumer’s increased confidence.