OUCH! Toyota Expecting To Drop Global Production By 20%

Toyota Motor expects to produce 6.5 million vehicles globally on a parent company basis this year, down more than 20 percent from an estimated 8.2 million last year, the Chunichi newspaper reported.

It would be the carmaker's lowest production volume since 2003 and 2004, said the daily, a regional newspaper where Toyota has its main manufacturing base.

Toyota is setting a global sales target for the year of about 7 million vehicles, and plans to produce fewer vehicles because it has a high level of inventories to clear, the paper said.

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downtoearth - 1/26/2009 11:51:57 AM

+1 Boost

You can treat it as a real measure of how painful and tough the current recession will be. It is no longer some government BS to keep citizens goofed and quell any protests or motion of no confidence, it's just a realistic prediction from a company which as for now survived the turmoil rather well, with a 4% decline in global sales as far as I can remember. Twenty percent. We will likely have/possess 20% less at the end of 2009 in relation to what we have now.

Lemonade - 1/26/2009 4:56:01 PM

+1 Boost

I don't think anything is as boring as your Datsun Q45

Type707 - 1/27/2009 2:42:53 AM

+1 Boost

Why in America though? haven't they been named number one in Sales after kicking GM on the Balls for the spot?

agent507 - 1/27/2009 5:28:05 AM

0 Boost

A big increase is in reality always followed by a big decrease - the higher you rise, the higher you will fall. Evolutions principle since the beginning of our planet. As for Toyota: They struggle like everybody else, and their ovverrated Lexus brand will fall even more (unfortunately we will not see the numbers in terms of profit and / or loss, because they are hidden under the wings of Toyota). But you can be sure about one thing:

1. in case of Audi, Mercedes, BMW, they will probably each have unneeded production capacity of round about 200.000 cars each (20% of 1 million cars produced)

2. in case of Toyota, with unnecessary production capacity for approximately 1.700.000 cars (diff. between 8.2 million and 6.5 million cars, 20% would be 1.600.000), that is a total different story

My 2 cents are that the small companies will be stronger after this - as they can respond easier - and the big ones will suffer more.