Toyota global sales fall for sixth consecutive month

Toyota Motor Corporation reported a decline in global sales and production for July, marking the sixth consecutive month of falling sales in the Chinese market. Global sales, which include the Lexus and Daihatsu brands, fell by approximately 4.8% to 5.3% year-on-year, while production saw a decrease of roughly 1.4% to 2.1%.

China remains a primary driver of the downturn, where sales of Toyota and Lexus plummeted by over 24%. The company attributed this to rising gasoline prices and intense competition from domestic Chinese manufacturers, such as BYD, which are gaining ground with electric and software-integrated vehicles. Production in China also saw a significant drop of 32.7%.

Other regions faced challenges as well: sales in the Middle East fell by approximately 44.5%, and the United States saw a slight decline of 0.8%. Conversely, the Japanese domestic market showed resilience with sales increasing by 11% and production rising by 12.4%. Exports from Japan also grew by 10.2%, reaching their highest level since October. Toyota continues to lean into the popularity of hybrid vehicles, expecting to surpass five million hybrid sales this year.