Japanese carmaker Honda said today the Sars outbreak has had a minimal impact so far o­n its Southeast Asian sales and expects to meet its 2003 sales target of 120,000 cars.

"We are cautiously optimistic o­n our outlook for Southeast Asia," Honda's chief operating officer for Asia and Oceania, Satoshi Toshida, told reporters.

Asked if the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars), which has led to deaths in five countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), was affecting sales, he said: "We have not seen any impact yet."