Japan’s leading automaker Toyota raised its yearly forecast Thursday following cost cuts and healthy sales quadrupled quarterly profits from the earlier year.
As with other companies that have operations in China, the risk of coronavirus remains.
Toyota Motor has stopped production at all its 12 plants in China, including four vehicle assembly plants.
The closure will remain on its place through Sunday, with a decision on future action coming Monday, according to Toyota.
The automaker reported October-December profit of 738 billion yen ($6.7 billion), up from 181 billion yen the earlier year. Quarterly sales dropping 3% to 7.5 trillion yen ($68.6 billion).
The automaker expects a profit during March 2020 of 2.35 trillion yen ($21 billion).
It had previously projected a 2.15 trillion yen ($20 billion) profit. Its yearly profit for the previous fiscal year amounted 1.88 trillion yen.
Executive Vice President Didier Leroy stated Toyota’s worldwide vehicle sales will increase in a balanced way through all major regions.
The automaker prepares to add model offerings with what he referred as “advanced technologies,” such as hybrids, which run on both gasoline engine and electric motor to provide good mileage.
Toyota’s corporate culture encourages one to have “a fighting spirit,” the ability to do what’s correct, not just pleasing bosses, fairness, clear objectives and remaining associated with one’s team, Leroy stated.
While falling short of German competitor Volkswagen AG in recent years, Toyota has marked new record worldwide vehicle sales for the company for the last four years straight, selling 10.74 million vehicles across the world in 2019.
An unfavorable exchange rate hurts Japanese exporters such as Toyota, but the damage was not expected to be as worse this fiscal year as it was last year, according to the company based in Toyota city, Aichi prefecture.
Last month, Toyota declared it was creating a “woven city” near Mount Fuji, powered by hydrogen fuel cells and it would include robotics, personal-mobility services and cars connected to the internet.
Toyota has been inviting researchers and business partners to participate in the project, set to open early next year, where people live to test out many technologies.
