KONTAN.CO.ID - TOKYO. Toyota Motor 7203.T more than doubled its second-quarter profit and sharply raised its full-year outlook on Wednesday, as a weaker yen currency bolstered the impact of robust global sales. The world's top-selling automaker reported a record operating profit of 1.44 trillion yen ($9.5 billion) in the three months to the end of September, a 155.6% increase from a year earlier. Toyota said it sold more cars in all global regions, including the United States, Asia, and its home market, over the six months to end-September compared to the same period a year earlier.
After years of criticism for being slow to embrace battery electric vehicles, Toyota unveiled a sweeping revamp of its EV strategy and committed to improve the driving range and cut costs of electric vehicles. Baca Juga: Motorcycle Sales in the Country Still Running in August 2023 It now appears to be benefiting from both market optimism about that strategy and renewed interest in its line-up of gasoline-electric hybrids as some of the enthusiasm around EVs fades, especially as consumers in the United States grapple with higher financing costs. Hybrids, which tend to be cheaper than some pure battery-powered EVs, still account for more than 90% of Toyota's electrified car sales. Sales of hybrids jumped 41% to 888,000 vehicles in the quarter to September. Still, analysts have said that Toyota faces plenty of challenges, particularly in China, where the rise of domestic EVs and the market's fast shift to battery-powered cars have hit rivals such as Nissan Motor 7201.T and Honda Motor 7267.T hard. Baca Juga: Vale Base Metals Commits Nearly $9 bln in Indonesia Investments China, the world's top auto market, is amid a "very severe price competition", Chief Financial Officer Yoichi Miyazaki told a briefing following the results. The major price competition was centered on battery EVs, he said. Toyota also faces a battle in Southeast Asian markets such as Thailand due to rising Chinese investments, fuelled by higher demand for EVs.
