Toyota Motor Corporation today said that Japanese fiscal year Q1 results produced a profit of ¥90.3 billion ($3.71 billion). Toyota sold 2.27 million cars and trucks in the quarter, an increase of 1.04 million compared to the same period last fiscal year.
The largest Japanese auto company also raised its full year sales forecast some 180,000 vehicles, to 9.76 million a better than 20% increase from 7.95 million cars produced in 2011. If current trends hold, Toyota will become the world’s largest automaker with more than 10 million vehicles sold, displacing General Motors when the books are closed for the 2012 calendar year. Year-to-date Toyota is ahead of GM by more than 300,000 units.
TMC also forecasts that for the fiscal year ending 31 March 2013, consolidated net revenue will be ¥22 trillion, operating income of ¥1 trillion and net income ¥760 billion. Toyota said those predictions are based on ¥80 to the U.S. dollar and ¥101 to the euro.
To put what was a strong quarterly performance in perspective, consider that in North America alone, Toyota vehicle sales totaled 663,000, an increase of 387,000 compared to the same period last fiscal year when natural disasters interrupted production. North American Operating income increased by ¥62.8 billion to ¥95.6 billion or $1.2 billion. This is more than Ford Motor’s global Q2 income of $1 billion, and Chrysler Group’s global return of $436 million in the same period, and just behind GM entire global income in Q2 of $1.5 billion.
“In all regions, vehicle sales increased significantly due to strong recovery of demand which had suffered last year from the lack of supply caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake. Despite the Yen’s appreciation, operating income increased substantially thanks to increased vehicle sales and cost reduction efforts including our company-wide VA activities,” said Takahiko Ijichi, Senior Managing Officer, TMC on a conference call with reporters,
In Japan, vehicle sales totaled 577,000, an increase of 285 thousand units compared to the same period last fiscal year. The operating income from Japanese operations increased by ¥313.7 billion to ¥107.1 billion.
In Europe, vehicle sales totaled 209,000, an increase of 35,000, while operating income increased by ¥10.9 billion to ¥3.4 billion.
In Asia, vehicle sales totaled 418,000, an increase of 159,000, while operating income increased by ¥41.4 billion to ¥101.5 billion.
In Central and South America, Oceania and Africa, vehicle sales totaled 402,000, an increase of 182,000, while operating income increased by 6 ¥.1 billion to ¥27.1 billion.
In the financial services segment, operating income decreased by ¥7.8 billion to ¥86.7 billion compared to the same period last fiscal year, including ¥16.5 billion of valuation gains on interest rate swaps. Excluding valuation gains/losses, operating income decreased by ¥26.7 billion to ¥70.1 billion.
