Agencies
Japanese auto giant Toyota kept its annual net profit forecast unchanged on Wednesday, despite logging a 26 percent drop for the first half of this financial year.
The world’s top-selling automaker said unit sales were hit by production cuts in its home market, related to a failure to fully comply with vehicle inspection standards.
In April to September, Toyota reported net profit of 1.9 trillion yen, down from 2.6 trillion in the same period a year ago.
Although its second-quarter earnings were far lower than analyst expectations, the company still forecasts full-year net profit of 3.57 trillion yen.
“We will strive to maintain and strengthen our earning power,” it said in a statement.
Chief Financial Officer Yoichi Miyazaki said a boost to global production would help the company catch up.
“Our Indiana plant in the United States, which had been partially shut down, resumed operations last month and we will return to a production pace of 10 million vehicles per year globally,” he said.Unit sales fell four percent in the first half of 2024-25, partly “due to the impact of halting production to address certification issues”, the company said.
