Automotive News Europe — 2024-02-06
Automotive Industry
After sprinting to record sales and output, Toyota says it is time to take a breather.
The world's biggest carmaker wants to shift to marathon mode by re-examining its production cadence and resetting its "cruising speed" in the coming fiscal year, executives in Japan say.
The course correction comes after Toyota Motor Corp. reported record sales and production in 2023 as it ramped up factories to feed pent-up demand. Since last summer when the semiconductor shortage eased, Toyota has been cranking out the cars.
But running red hot has risks. Employees are overworked, suppliers are overstretched and affiliated companies in Japan are grappling with various quality challenges.
"We look back on the year as if we were sprint runners," CFO Yoichi Miyazaki said Tuesday, while announcing a 76% surge in operating profit in the company's fiscal third quarter. "We need initiatives that will allow us to run a marathon," he said.
Output levels in the coming year will be adjusted due to labor shortages, overstretched suppliers and a general rethink after production was temporarily stopped due to misconduct at group companies such as Daihatsu and Toyota Industries, Miyazaki said at a news briefing.
"As for the pace next year, we will re-evaluate and review the cruising speed," he said.