Toyota posts $819 million Q1 loss, but anticipates upturn

The world's largest automaker, Toyota Motor Corp, today said that it lost a net 77.8 billion yen, or $819 million, in the quarter that ended in June, as global vehicle sales continued to slump. But the Japanese automaker lowered its loss forecast for the current fiscal year by about 18 per cent, to $4.7 billion.

Toyota, which posted a record loss for the fiscal year that ended in March, said losses in the last three months were smaller than expected thanks to stringent cost-cutting and a decline in inventory. But sluggish sales in the United States, the company's biggest market, as well as a stronger yen, which erodes the value of overseas earnings, cut into its bottom line.

However, Toyota now sees narrower losses than initially expected for the fiscal first half ending 30 September as well as for the full year through 31 March, as it speeds up cost-cutting measures.

Government stimulus measures aimed at spurring purchases of low-emission vehicles in Japan and elsewhere provided somewhat of a boost, as booming sales of its redesigned Prius hybrid is also helping revive its plant operating efficiency after the company reduced production to lower inventory levels in the January-March quarter.

Steered by newly appointed president and founding-family member Akio Toyoda, Toyota now expects a net loss of 250 billion yen for the half ending September and a net loss of 450 billion yen for the full fiscal year. The company previously projected a net loss of 450 billion yen for the first half and a net loss of 550 billion yen for the full year.

Toyota sold 1.4 million automobiles globally in the quarter, 56 per cent less than a year earlier. Vehicle sales in North America dipped 47 per cent to 387,000.