Toyota’s profit rose 10.3 percent in 2020 fiscal year
Tokyo, May 12 (efe-epa).- Japanese automaker Toyota announced Tuesday that its profits in the fiscal year that ended on Mar. 31 rose 10.3 percent over the 2019 financial year to 2.08 trillion yen ($19.33 billion).
However, the group’s net revenues declined by 1 percent to 29.93 trillion yen.
“Due to the spread of COVID-19, net revenues were decreased by 380 billion yen and operating income were decreased by 160 billion yen,” Toyota’s chief financial officer, Kenta Kon, said during the presentation of the results.
Toyota’s operating income also decreased from 2.47 trillion yen in the previous financial year to 2.44 trillion yen largely on account of currency fluctuations.
While the effects of foreign exchange rates and marketing activities decreased operating income, cost reduction efforts and a reduction in expenses increased it, Kon said.
Toyota, which, like other companies in the sector, has been badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic, reported that in the recently closed fiscal year it sold 8.96 million vehicles, 18,372 fewer units than those sold in the 2019 financial year.
The company’s CFO attributed the decline in sales to decreased sales mainly in Asia owing to market deterioration in Thailand, Indonesia and India.
However, for the current fiscal year, which will end on Mar. 31, 2021, Toyota estimates that its sales will fall to about 7 million vehicles.
It also forecasts consolidated sales revenues of 24 trillion yen and an operating income of 0.5 trillion yen for the fiscal year ending Mar. 31, 2021.
In North America – the Japanese group’s biggest market – Toyota sold a total of 2.71 million vehicles during the 2020 fiscal year, 31,882 less than in the previous year.
Meanwhile, vehicle sales in Japan increased by 13,372 units to 2.24 million units and in Europe by 34,477 units to 1.03 million.
In Asia, the Japanese automaker sold a total of 1.60 million units, a decrease of 79,624 units.
The 2020 fiscal year has been marked primarily by the auto sector’s poor performance in the fourth quarter due to the pandemic, which forced Toyota to close factories and suspend production globally due to falling demand.
Between January and March, the Japanese manufacturer’s net profits plunged 86.2 percent to 63.1 billion yen. EFE-EPA
ag/pd/lds
