TOKYO (Reuters) – Toyota Global production of Motor (NYSE:) fell for the 10th straight month in November, the Japanese automaker said Wednesday, although global sales grew for the second month in a row thanks to solid demand in the United States and China.
The world’s largest automaker produced 869,230 vehicles globally in November, down 6.2% from the same month last year, a bigger drop than October’s 0.8% decline.
Toyota’s U.S. production fell 11.8% and recovered slowly, although production of the Grand Highlander and Lexus TX SUV models resumed in late October after a four-month hiatus.
Chinese production fell 1.6%, which was better than a 9% decline in the previous month, as Toyota saw higher local sales of its Granvia and Sienna minivan models and the bZ3 electric sedan that is partnered with BYD ( SZ:) was developed.
Amid the rise of BYD and other Chinese brands, Toyota has decided to build an independent factory in Shanghai and produce electric cars for the luxury brand Lexus from around 2027, the newspaper reported on Monday.
In Japan, which accounts for about a third of Toyota’s global output, output fell 9.3% in November, partly due to a two-day production halt at its Fujimatsu and Yoshiwara plants.
Toyota saw its global sales rise for the second month in a row, up 1.7% to 920,569 vehicles, setting a new record for the month of November.
In the January to November period, Toyota’s global production of about 8.75 million vehicles was 5.2% lower than the same period last year, while global sales fell 1.2%.
Production and sales figures include vehicles from Toyota’s Lexus brand, but exclude those from group companies Hino and Daihatsu.
