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10 TOYOTA •Annual Report 2008 •
Messages from the Management
Q.Looking back on fiscal 2008, how would you summarize market
trends and Toyota’s sales performance?
A.Although market conditions were severe, we sold a record
number of vehicles.
In fiscal 2008, we sold 8.91 million vehicles on a consolidated basis,
approximately 390 thousand vehicles more than in the previous fiscal year.
In Japan, the automobile market continued to contract, but the introduction
of numerous new models enabled us to increase our market share despite
a decline in sales volume. In North America, the market was flat in the first
half of the fiscal year, but declined in the second half due to financial
instability caused by rising crude oil prices and the subprime mortgage crisis.
Nevertheless, sales of the Camry, which was fully remodeled in 2006, and of
the Prius, were robust. As a result, vehicle sales for the year increased slightly
and we garnered a record share of the U.S. market. In Europe, growth was
sluggish overall, but sales of the Auris and Prius increased in Western Europe
and sales of the Camry and Avensis were particularly favorable in Eastern
Europe and Russia. In Asia, the IMV* series and the Yaris sold well in Thailand
and Indonesia. In other regions, there was vigorous demand for the Corolla
and the IMV series in Central and South America and for the Camry in
Australia. This resulted in a substantial increase in the number of vehicles
sold in Asia and other regions.
* IMV: An abbreviation for Innovative International Multipurpose Vehicle, which refers to sport-utility vehicles
(SUVs), pickup trucks, and other multipurpose vehicles that Toyota develops and produces overseas
for markets worldwide.
Market Overview
An Interview with the President
’04 ’05 ’06 ’07 ’08
0
6,000
4,000
2,000
8,000
10,000
(Thousands of units)
FY
Japan
North America
Europe
Asia
Other Regions
+4.6%
8,913
-3.7%
2,188
+0.5%
2,958
+4.9%
1,284
+21.2%
956
+17.8%
1,527
Vehicle Sales by Region
Note: Fiscal years ended March 31
Build a Strong,
Flexible Corporate
Structure
Katsuaki Watanabe,
President