Toyota operating profit surges, but falls short of outlook

TOKYO, May 11 Kyodo -
Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday its group operating profit in fiscal 2010 jumped threefold from the previous year to 468.28 billion yen on the strength of brisk sales in emerging markets, but fell far short of its projection due to the effects of the earthquake and tsunami disasters in March.
The top Japanese automaker said it will move up its earlier schedule in its efforts to normalize production and restore its domestic and overseas output to 70 percent of the normal level in June from the current 50 percent.
Toyota had earlier said it plans to start increasing production in July in Japan and in August outside Japan. But Toyota President Akio Toyoda maintained the automaker's earlier plan to resume full production around November or December.
''Though (the degree of output) may vary among regions and vehicle models, the production level is expected to return to 70 percent of the normal level in June domestically and overseas,'' Toyoda told a news conference in Tokyo.
In the year ended in March, the automaker, based in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture, said its group net profit rose twofold from the previous year to 408.18 billion yen on sales of 18.99 trillion yen, up 0.2 percent.
The net and operating profits undershot the 490 billion yen and 550 billion yen projected in February partly due to an operating loss of 110 billion yen the firm incurred after the March 11 quake and tsunami.
Toyota raised its dividend payment for the year to 50 yen per share from 45 yen in the previous year.
It held off releasing its earnings outlook and sales volume projection for the current fiscal year, saying it cannot calculate reasonable figures at this time and more time will be needed to examine its production and sales plan.
Toyoda said the company aims to unveil its earnings outlook by mid-June.
Toyota, which has Daihatsu Motor Co. and Hino Motors Ltd. under its wing, sold 7.31 million vehicles globally in fiscal 2010, up from 7.24 million in the previous year.
The company sold 5.40 million vehicles overseas in the year ended in March, up from 5.07 million the previous year.
A significant sales increase in Asia and other regions offset sluggish domestic sales, which were affected by the disaster and the termination of the Japanese government subsidy program for purchases of environmentally friendly automobiles, Toyota said.
Adding to the quake damage, the stronger yen continued to weigh on the business as Toyota booked an exchange loss of 290 billion yen.
Toyota Executive Vice Satoshi Ozawa expressed concern that the automaker may be losing competitiveness against foreign rivals due to the yen's appreciation against the dollar and euro.
''Our biggest rivals -- makers of German and South Korean vehicles -- enjoy the benefits of weakness in their respective currencies, and it is starting to create a gap in competitiveness,'' Ozawa told the Tokyo news conference.
President Toyoda said he is eager to maintain his commitment to keep domestic production and employment intact, but called for the need to create an environment where the automaker can compete on an equal footing with overseas rivals.
To cope with growing concern about shortages of electricity in the Chubu region as Chubu Electric Power Co. will suspend operation of the Hamaoka nuclear power station in Shizuoka Prefecture, Toyota will take such steps as running plants on holidays when power consumption is lower.
''We will make utmost efforts to do what we can while balancing economy and energy saving,'' Toyoda said.