- Toyota's total vehicle production surpassed the 9 million mark in the past twelve months.
- The Japanese company produced 9.13 million units worldwide; it had originally forecast to build 9.7 million.
- According to the company, the long-term effects of the crisis are difficult to assess.
The pandemic showed us the fragility of our system, from health care to car manufacturing. The disruption in this sector caused by the shutdown at the beginning of the health crisis led to what is known as the supply chain crisis.
Basically, once normalcy was restored, manufacturers could not produce at the same rate as before because of a lack of parts from their suppliers. This had a major impact on the price of models and the wait time to get a new vehicle.
As a result, manufacturers have seen their production and sales figures drop significantly. We feel things are picking up, but it is slow. Toyota, one of the biggest players on the planet, has been affected and has often shared information about its production targets and the reality, which has not always been in line with its expectations.
Therefore, the information shared by the company this week regarding its annual results is interesting. We learn that the Japanese company surpassed the nine million vehicle mark in production during the period ending last March. Specifically, the company assembled 9.13 million models in the last 12 months. The year before, when it was even more affected by the crisis, it produced 8.57 million.
.JPG?scaledown=450)
This is progress, but it is still below the original target of 9.7 million for the year just ended. The good news is that the 9.13 million units produced represent an annual production record.
However, the world's number one chip maker warned that it continues to be affected by the long-running global chip shortage. In fact, the company said it was difficult to predict the long-term impact.
In other words, the crisis is here to stay, even if its impact seems to be easing.
On the sales side, the Japanese company also saw an increase from 9.51 million to 9.61 million in the last fiscal year.
It will be interesting to watch the company's results over the next twelve months. Analyzing the numbers at this time next year will tell us whether the crisis is still with us or behind us.
Worldwide sales for the 12 months ending in March rose to 9.61 million vehicles from 9.51 million a year earlier, setting a new annual record for the company.
The company did not announce new sales or production targets for the current fiscal year, which began in April.
It said it had sold only 17,473 battery electric vehicles (EVs) worldwide so far in the first three months of 2023, including those of its luxury Lexus brand.
By comparison, Toyota sold 24,466 battery electric vehicles worldwide for the entire year of 2022.