15°c Clear
28°c Isolated showers
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Toyota bullish on sales following positive quarter
Shizuo Kambayashi / The Associated Press Toyota has regained the global sales crown. (CP)
TOKYO -- Toyota raised its sales target for this year to a record 9.76 million vehicles and reported a strong recovery in quarterly profit Friday, underlining its bounce back from a disaster-plagued 2011.
Toyota Motor Corp. said April-June profit zoomed to US$3.7 billion from $14 million the year before. Its new sales target would represent a 23 per cent increase from the 7.95 million vehicles sold in 2011, and is 180,000 vehicles more than Toyota's last forecast in February.
The carmaker's quarterly sales soared nearly 60 per cent to $70.5 billion, rebounding from a sales crash all Japanese automakers suffered after the earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan in March last year.
Toyota said quarterly vehicle sales nearly doubled from the year before to 2.3 million vehicles as sales rose in regions including North America, Europe, Japan and the rest of Asia. The regaining of U.S. market share is crucial for Toyota as that is where it makes the bulk of its profits.
Toyota, which makes the Camry sedan, Lexus luxury model and Prius hybrid, has had hard times in the past several years, including recalls of more than 14 million vehicles that began three years ago and came amid faltering global demand from the financial crisis.
The March 11 disasters in Japan, followed by the floods in Thailand, added to Toyota's hardships.
But Toyota has been recovering. For the first half of this year, it regained its spot as the world's top automaker in global vehicle sales, beating U.S. rival General Motors Co., as well as Volkswagen AG of Germany. Toyota officials have played down the importance of being No. 1.
Friday's sales target, if achieved, would be a record for Toyota, founded 75 years ago. Before the spate of quality problems, Toyota had made no secret of ambitions to reach global sales of 10 million vehicles. Toyota's past sales record was achieved in 2007, at 9.36 million vehicles.
After the recall debacle, president Akio Toyoda, the grandson of the company's founder, had taken on a more a humble tone, playing down the growth strategy of his predecessor, Katsuaki Watanabe, and stressing fun and quality products. But even Toyoda has recently started to stress growth.
The company said it carried out cost cuts totalling $897 million for the latest quarter, offsetting the negative effect of a strong yen, which erased $513 million from operating income. A strong currency hurts Japanese exporters such as Toyota by eroding the value of overseas earnings.
Senior managing officer Takahiko Ijichi said the company left its full-year earnings forecasts unchanged because of the weakening euro and other risks.
For the full fiscal year through March 2013, it expects $9.7 billion in profit, up 168 per cent from the previous year, on $282 billion in sales, up 18 per cent.
Jesse Toprak, vice-president of market intelligence for Santa Monica, California-based TrueCar.com, said Toyota is regaining the U.S. market share it lost last year.
"Toyota's recovery has been a remarkable one this year," he said. "Customer loyalty for Toyota products turned out to be much stronger than we anticipated."
-- The Associated Press
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition August 4, 2012 B4
More Business
- Back to Top
- Return to Business
More Business
(1 of 16 articles for today)
Swedish government sells 260 million shares in bank Nordea for $3 billion
4:12 AM 0STOCKHOLM - The Swedish government says it has raised 19.5 billion Swedish kronor ($3 billion) by almost halving its stake ...
Poll
Most Popular Business
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- Shark Club opens in citiplace
- Daycare-subsidy rules bad for business
- Magellan signs MOU to produce F-35 tails
- Carriers turned off by Canada's wireless law
- Local business incubator gets new name
- Mountain Equipment Co-op unveils new logo, name to appeal to urban customers
- NY, Va. 7-Eleven stores raided as US accuses owners and managers of exploiting immigrants
- U.S. hedge fund increases its ownership stake in Tim Hortons to 5.5%
- St. Vital Centre's energy savings help managers snag BOMA awards
- Sobeys expanding reach in Western Canada with Safeway acquisition
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- Shark Club opens in citiplace
- Aircraft maintenance engineer taking off
- Two CBC reporters freed after being detained in Turkey
- St. Vital Centre's energy savings help managers snag BOMA awards
- Toronto condo market poses economic risk to Canada
- Daycare-subsidy rules bad for business
- New owner for lumber stores
- Fund helps entrepreneurs fly
- New owner for lumber stores
- Earls Pembina says goodbye after 18 years
- Sobeys expanding reach in Western Canada with Safeway acquisition
- Grove Pub to take over former home of Papa George's
- New rules let customers cancel phone contracts without penalty after two years
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- MTS to sell Allstream to Egyptian investment group, focus on Manitoba market
- Where is easy street? Survey of city's richest routes may surprise
- Custom-made suits no longer just for the ultra-wealthy
- Eateries brace for Blue blitz
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- Daycare-subsidy rules bad for business
- Warren Buffett -- Winnipeg-style
- Knights riding in with cash to spend
- Transcona transformation
- Target exceeds sales goal at Canadian stores
- The $2-million question
- Accounting merger adds and subtracts
- Bombardier wins German locomotive rail order potentially worth US$2 billion
- Magellan signs MOU to produce F-35 tails
- Sobeys expanding reach in Western Canada with Safeway acquisition
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- Toronto condo market poses economic risk to Canada
- Cutting edge, made-in-Manitoba tech finds buyer -- in Manitoba
- Google unveils Internet beaming balloons launched into stratosphere
- Warren Buffett -- Winnipeg-style
- Fund helps entrepreneurs fly
- Accounting merger adds and subtracts
- St. Vital Centre's energy savings help managers snag BOMA awards
- Daycare-subsidy rules bad for business
- New owner for lumber stores
- Snowbirds: It's that time of year again
- Sobeys expanding reach in Western Canada with Safeway acquisition
- Custom-made suits no longer just for the ultra-wealthy
- New rules let customers cancel phone contracts without penalty after two years
- Where is easy street? Survey of city's richest routes may surprise
- Value Partners cracks $1-B mark in assets
- MTS to sell Allstream to Egyptian investment group, focus on Manitoba market
- Manitoba Movers
- Grove Pub to take over former home of Papa George's
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
Have Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?
Login SubscribeHave Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?
SubscribeThe Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.