Toyota officials in the US have said they saw “optimism” in that country’s auto sales trends and welcomed the Obama administration’s intervention in the industry.
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Toyota’s sales fell 39% last month following a 40% year-on-year decline in February.
“I believe we are in a bottoming process for the industry,” Toyota group vice president Bob Carter told the Wall Street Journal (WSJ). “We need to watch very closely for when the overall industry begins to improve.”
Carter said the 18% sales improvement in March compared with February could be “a very early indication that we have floored and some optimism is starting to return to the market.”
He said production cuts reduced dealer inventory by 18% from year end to 205,000, and he expects levels to normalise by the end of April.
Toyota executives also voiced support for the government efforts to restructure General Motors and Chrysler.
“We continue to support measures from the administration that continue to support the viability of the entire industry,” said public affairs chief Irv Miller.
“We appreciate very much that the current initiatives are shifting from car makers towards the consumers and the car buyers. That’s where we believe the focus needs to be placed.
“Consumer confidence is really going to drive recovery in this market.
“We believe a strong Chrysler, a strong GM, a strong Detroit manufacturing base is good for the country,” he told the WSJ. “We continue to maintain that position.”
