NAGOYA, Japan – Toyota has overtaken Volkswagen to become the best car dealer in the world, the first time the Japanese automaker has taken the plunge in five years, thanks to sales strong in China and the USA
Toyota announced Thursday that it sold 9.52 million new vehicles in 2020, down 11.3% from a year earlier. The Japanese manufacturer said when it combines the sale of Subaru, which became an equity bond in 2020, the number reached 10.4 million units.
As a result of the spread of the coronavirus, Toyota group sales fell nearly half in April last year, compared to a year earlier. But the company then managed to get past a quick sale, especially in China, which recovered quickly from COVID after a tight shutdown.
Toyota sold 987,700 cars in December, up 8.9% from a year earlier and the highest number ever for the month. In North America, sales began to improve in May thanks to the popularity of SUVs.
Toyota in 2020 created 9.21 million vehicles, down 14.1%. In Japan, Toyota built 2.92 million cars, including Lexus models, a fall of 14.4%.
Toyota has long been aiming to deliver 3 million vehicles in Japan annually, a target that was meant to maintain the domestic supply chain, employment and suppliers. The automaker told Nikkei that it has “maintained about 3 million units and was able to maintain” its supply chain.