Toyota raises annual forecast by 15% after profit growth — TimesLIVE

Toyota reported profit growth for the first time in six quarters and raised its annual operating profit forecast by 15%. In Tokyo trading, the company’s shares rose by more than 14% after the results were released, which could be their biggest one-day jump since 2008, TimesLIVE reports.

Forecast and quarterly results

Toyota expects operating profit of 3.9 trillion yen for the financial year ending in March. From July to September, the company’s revenue rose by 34%, while operating profit amounted to 1.13 trillion yen. This exceeded the median forecast of nine analysts surveyed by LSEG, which stood at 992 billion yen.

The company managed to offset declining sales in China and the Middle East thanks to a weaker yen and strong demand for higher-margin hybrid vehicles. Before the financial results were published, Toyota’s share price had already gained about 8%, as investors sold shares in companies linked to artificial intelligence and bought shares in major corporations after the US midterm elections.

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Betting on hybrids

Toyota has focused on developing gasoline-electric hybrids, a technology the company popularized with the Prius model. This approach helps the automaker retain its share in the key US market, although in other markets it competes with rapidly growing Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers.

At the same time, the company, like other automakers, is being affected by rising fuel prices due to the war in the Middle East. Toyota’s accounting chief, Takanori Azuma, said at a briefing that the company is offsetting the consequences of the situation in the region and rising material prices by boosting sales and cutting costs.