This decline was primarily attributed to a significant decrease in sales in China, the largest auto market globally, where sales plummeted by 36%. The decline in China was influenced by several factors, including the timing of the Lunar New Year holiday and intense competition in the market, leading to a price war.
While the Lunar New Year holiday fell in February this year compared to January last year, contributing to the decline in sales, Toyota also faced challenges from fierce competition in China’s auto market. However, for January and February combined, the sales decline in China was less severe at 0.7%.
Despite the challenges in China, Toyota saw a 16% surge in U.S. sales and a 14% increase in European sales for February. However, domestic sales in Japan plummeted by a third due to production stoppages at Daihatsu, a small car unit of Toyota, which also faced reputational damage from a safety test scandal reported almost a year ago.
Sales in Indonesia and Thailand also experienced double-digit declines for Toyota. Despite the overall decrease in sales, almost two-fifths of the vehicles sold globally by Toyota in February were petrol-electric hybrids, indicating continued consumer interest in eco-friendly vehicles.
Global sales figures include vehicles sold under the Toyota and Lexus brands. Additionally, Daihatsu, which is part of Toyota’s operations, reported a significant decline in worldwide sales, down by 66% in February.
Toyota’s global output for February also saw a decrease of 2.6%, with 737,178 vehicles produced.