Toyota Motor Corp. said Tuesday its global production for April rose 13.8 percent from a year earlier to 787,800 units, a record high for the month, as it continues to overcome the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic and chip shortages.
Its production outside Japan increased 14.7 percent to 514,738 vehicles, also a record high for April, with output in China surging 51.9 percent after the lifting of lockdowns in Shanghai and also increasing in North America and Europe, the automaker said.
Domestic output climbed 12.2 percent to 273,062 cars, helped by robust demand in Japan and improved semiconductor procurement, Toyota said.
Global sales rose 4.9 percent to 800,863 units due to brisk sales in Japan, which saw a 21.5 percent increase to 125,326 vehicles. Overseas sales grew 2.3 percent to 675,537 units as strong demand in China made up for a fall in other markets including Europe and North America.
The all-time high in production for April comes as Toyota said earlier this month it aims to make and sell a record number of cars globally under the Toyota and Lexus brands in the current fiscal year through next March.
The giant automaker will produce 10.1 million units and sell 10.4 million units for the year as it ramps up factory operations on the back of improved chip supply.
Total worldwide production for April by Japan's eight major automakers, including Toyota, surged 14.5 percent to 1.90 million units, according to their data released Tuesday, helped by solid domestic production.
Six of the eight companies saw output rise. Nissan Motor Co. logged a 15.8 percent increase to 240,020 cars, with notable growth in the United States and Britain, up 17.2 percent and 23.0 percent, respectively.
Global production at Honda Motor Co. soared 44.5 percent to 273,763 cars as output in China more than doubled in April.
Global sales at the eight manufacturers rose 3.0 percent to 1.91 million vehicles.
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