Toyota sees fall in global production
- Source: Shanghai Daily
- [09:47 January 28 2011]
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Toyota Motor Corp, the world's No. 1 auto maker, said yesterday its worldwide production of vehicles fell for the fourth straight month in December, dented by falling output in Japan after subsidies for green cars expired.
Meanwhile, Japanese rivals Honda Motor Co and Nissan Motor Co expanded production to meet strong demand overseas. Toyota said its global production fell 6.5 percent from a year earlier in December to 594,882 vehicles.
The fall reflected a steep double-digit drop in output from its Japanese factories, which was accompanied by a 33 percent tumble in domestic sales. The expiration of government subsidies for energy efficient vehicle purchases has battered sales industrywide.
The maker of the Corolla and Prius hybrid recorded a 6.2 percent rise in exports thanks to larger shipments to Latin America, Europe and Asia. Production outside Japan rose 1 percent to 351,053 vehicles - a record high for the month of December, Toyota said.
For all of 2010, Toyota's global production expanded almost 20 percent to 7.623 million vehicles.
Nissan, based in Yokohama, made 351,334 vehicles in December, up 20 percent and a record high for the month, the company said.
Robust demand for the new March compact car and the NV200 van drove China production up 21 percent year-on-year, offsetting a slight 0.1 percent output decline in the United States. Exports rose 34 percent to 76,490 vehicles, and domestic sales fell 20 percent.
Nissan produced 4.053 million vehicles in 2010, up 37 percent and a single-year record for the company.
