Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
Navigation
Primary Navigation
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular
Secondary Navigation
Search
Search:
Toyota to shut production plants for 11 days
AFP - 1 hour 4 minutes ago
TOKYO (AFP) - - Toyota Motor Corp. said Tuesday that it would suspend production at all of its domestic plants for 11 days in February and March in response to a slump in sales.
The move underscores the rapidly deteriorating fortunes of Japan's auto giants, which have racked up bumper profits in recent years and invested heavily to expand their production facilities overseas.
"We will suspend the operation of 12 Toyota factories in Japan for 11 more days," a Toyota spokesman said.
Japan's top automaker is already idling its domestic plants for three days in January to cope with rapidly worsening demand.
The Japanese auto giant last month forecast its first-ever annual operating loss, blaming "an unprecedented crisis" in the global auto industry.
Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe said Monday that he expected demand would turn upward in the second half of the year.
"But I think it will be difficult to go up all at once. The rise will be gradual," he told reporters.
Toyota, which vies with troubled US firm General Motors for the crown of the world's largest automaker, has already moved to reduce production at its domestic, US, Canadian and French factories.
It also plans to lay off 3,000 temporary workers in Japan, where it builds cars for both domestic and overseas markets.
Toyota reported Monday a 37 percent drop in US sales in December, capping a tough year during which the Japanese giant's sales in the world's biggest car market dropped 16 percent to 2.2 million vehicles.
Toyota Motor shares ended 40 yen, or 1.33 percent, higher at 3,050 yen on Tuesday. The benchmark Nikkei index rose 0.42 percent as a weaker yen boosted exporters.
The global slowdown has badly shaken Japan's automakers, which in recent years have cashed in on worldwide demand for their cars.
Toyota had enjoyed hefty profits in recent years fuelled by demand overseas, particularly in the United States, for its eco-friendly hybrid cars.
But demand has fallen sharply in Western markets as a credit crunch and rising unemployment put people off buying cars.
Fewer Japanese are buying cars too. New vehicle sales in Japan slumped last year to the lowest level since 1974, an industry group said Monday.
Domestic sales, excluding mini-vehicles, tumbled 6.5 percent from the previous year to 3.2 million units for a fifth straight annual decline, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said.
Japanese makers, however, are in better health than the Big Three US automakers, which have been forced to seek financial lifelines from the US government to stave off bankruptcy.
Email Story
IM Story
Printable View
Blog This
Recommend this article
Average (0 votes)
Sign in to recommend this article »
Most Recommended Stories »
Most Popular – Top Stories
Viewed
Steve Jobs has "hormone imbalance," to stay on as Apple CEO
Jett Travolta died of 'seizure': Bahamas officials
Pink iguanas discovered on Galapagos Islands
Troops battle Hamas in Gaza cities as Israel spurns truce bids
Milky Way spins faster, has more mass than thought: astronomers
View Complete List »
Search:
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular