Toyoda Gosei buoyed by higher sales, overseas automotive recovery

Aichi, Japan – Toyoda Gosei has seen revenue and profits rise over the first nine months of its fiscal year, due mainly to a strong performance in the US market.

Sales over the nine months to end of December were up 17% year-on-year at Yen701.8 billion (€5 billion) due mainly to the recovery of automotive production in overseas and the foreign exchange effects of the weaker yen.

Higher sales, said Toyoda Gosei 7 Feb, were achieved despite production cutbacks by major customers in Japan, due to semiconductor shortages and “other factors”.

In terms of profits, the group reported a 25% rise in operating profit to Yen23.6 billion, driven by higher sales and a ‘group-wide initiative’ to address costs and increase revenue.

In terms of geographical regions, Toyoda Gosei saw sales in Japan decline 2% year-on-year to Yen289 billion, mainly due to production cutbacks by major customers.

Segment profit plunged 90% to Yen800 million, due mainly to the impact of decreased sales, changes in the product mix, and an increase in fixed costs.

In Americas, sales were up 40% at Yen240 billion, driven by factors such as the recovery of automotive production and the depreciation of the yen.

Profits in the region jumped 903% to Yen9.2 billion as sales increased and cost improvements were implemented to reflect higher cost of materials, transport, and energy in prices.

Asia also saw a 52% rise in profit to Yen15 billion, on 30% higher sales to Yen209 billion.

The growth, Toyoda Gosei said, was driven by a recovery in automotive production in China, Thailand and India as well as the depreciation of the yen.

Europe and Africa remained in red, as the segment reported a loss of Yen1.4 billion, down from last year’s Yen400 million.

Toyoda Gosei linked the decline to the reduction in production of its subsidiary in the UK and the impact of soaring prices of materials and energy.

The region reported an 8.5% increase in sales to Yen21 billion, mainly due to the depreciation of the yen.