Toyota continues to be world's top-selling automaker, third year in a row
1 min read . Updated: 30 Jan 2023, 11:53 AM IST
Premium- Toyota sold 10.5 million vehicles in 2022, maintaining its title for the world's top-selling automaker.
Japan-based Toyota Motor Corp continues to be the world's top-selling automaker, defending its title for a third straight year. The company recently said it sold 10.5 million vehicles in 2022.
At the number 2 position is the Volkswagen Group that reported its lowest ever sales in over a decade earlier this month. The auto maker sold 8.3 million vehciles in 2022. The Ukraine war and Covid-19 lockdowns in China impacted the supply chains.
Coming back to Toyota, its global sales - including truck unit Hino Motors and small-car maker Daihatsu, inched down 0.1% as record overseas sales of 8.6 million vehicles helped offset a 9.6% dip in its home market to 1.9 million.
The company was hit by chip-related supply constraints like other rivals. But a strong demand in Asia and an increase in the production capacity and optimisation in Asia and North America helped it boost global production by 5% in 2022.
According to a report by Bloomberg, S&P Global Mobility predicts that Toyota will continue to widen its lead over Volkswagen in 2023, with 10.4 million light vehicle sales versus 7.99 million for the German carmaker. It says that the auto maker's sales are projected to recover from 2024, while Toyota is on track to top 11 million in annual light vehicle sales by the end of the decade.
“For both companies, the impact of production constraints will gradually ease," said Yoshiaki Kawano, an analyst at S&P Global Mobility. “Overall, moderate recovery and growth are seen over the medium to long term."
Toyota Motor Corp. made Lexus President Koji Sato chief executive officer, replacing the long-serving Akio Toyoda. Sato, 53, takes on leadership of Toyota at a watershed moment. The carmaker is facing criticism for its reluctance to plow headlong into electric vehicles, instead spreading its bets across various technologies such as battery-based EVs, hybrid technology, hydrogen-powered cars and traditional combustion vehicles.
(With inputs from agencies)
