Toyota has reduced its global sales target for next year by 6.7% to 9.7m units, saying it would focus on hybrids and more fuel-efficient vehicles.
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The automaker blamed rising raw materials costs and petrol prices and the US slow-down for the recalculation, which came after it last month trimmed 450,000 units from 2008 production and the global sales forecast was lowered 350,000 to 9.5m vehicles.
It has lowered its 2010 forecast for North America, now excluding Mexico but still the world’s biggest market, to 2.7m vehicles from 3m.
In Japan, automaker president Katsuaki Watanabe said: “We see the slowdown in the US market as a fundamental change.”
He added that a focus on petrol-electric cars and sales in emerging markets would offset cuts elsewhere.
Toyota has already said its under-construction Mississippi plant would be switched to the upcoming redesigned Prius hybrid (photos of prototypes showing attractively updated but still distinctive exterior styling and a new cabin with swoopy new centre console and relocated gear selector were published recently on the internet) from the planned Highlander SUVs and has now said a plug-in version initially promised for 2010 will now be offered to rental car fleets by the end of next year.
Watanabe also promised a next-generation electric vehicle would be out early in the next decade.
Toyota also has a low-cost car for emerging markets like India and Brazil in its plans.
Toyota Europe officials in the UK and Belgium could not immediately be reached for comment.
