Word was that Toyota (TM) was hurting. Sales in the US have not been robust and they have been falling in the company’s home market of Japan. Car markets are slowing overall in both countries. Toyota was knocked off the top spot in the annual Consumer Reports reliability survey. The firm has recalled over two million cars in the last year or so.
The company reported its third quarter. July-September operating profit was 597 billion yen ($5.2 billion), up from 581 billion a year ago, when profit jumped 44 percent according to Reuters. Second-quarter net profit grew 11.1 percent to 451 billion yen, as stronger sales in Europe, Asia and other markets eclipsed the slide in the United States and Japan, Toyota’s two biggest markets. Revenue rose 11.2 percent to 6.49 trillion yen.
Toyota demonstrated, as it has for years, that it can enter new markets more efficiently than its competition and introduce new models aligned to emerging customer needs. The Camray is being sold in places like Russia and China. It is a "world car" that the Japanese company can sell in almost any market. It remains fuel-efficient and reliable. On the innovation side of the company, Toyota has introduced the hybrid Prius. The company can barely keep up with demand in the US and the product could become the company’s flagship as fuel costs become a bigger consumer concern.
No crying for Toyota.
Douglas A. McIntyre
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