TOKYO (AP) — Japan
By YURI KAGEYAMA
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s top automaker Toyota said Wednesday its profit for January-March fell 4% as vehicle sales lagged in North America, while smaller car manufacturer Honda reported a loss.
Toyota Motor Corp. recorded a quarterly profit of 459.5 billion yen, or $4.2 billion, down from 480.8 billion yen in the same period the previous year. Quarterly sales rose 2% to 7.75 trillion yen ($70 billion), the company said.
The maker of the Camry sedan, Prius hybrid and Lexus luxury models is projecting a profit of 2.25 trillion yen, or $20 billion, for the fiscal year through March 2020, up nearly 20% from 1.88 trillion yen ($17 billion) for the fiscal year through March 2019.
The company said results for the fiscal year through March this year were hurt by the absence of a U. S. tax break that boosted earnings in the previous fiscal year, and by investment losses.
Still, the 30.2 trillion yen ($275 billion) in annual revenue Toyota reported was the first time a Japanese company has recorded sales above 30 trillion yen ($273 billion), a milestone for Japan Inc.
