LONDON: Toyota raised its earnings forecast for the year to March, saying it expects to book a record $18.1 billion annual net profit thanks to a weak yen and cost cuts.
The revision marked the second upgrade for the fiscal year to March as the world’s biggest automaker lifted its net profit estimate to 2.13 trillion yen from an earlier 2.0 trillion yen forecast.
The Corolla and Camry maker also said sales would come in at 27 trillion yen, up from an earlier 26.5 trillion yen forecast.
Operating profit would be 2.7 trillion yen, against a previous 2.5 trillion yen estimate, it added.
“While we expect a reduction in vehicle sales, we are raising our operating income forecast… factoring in the change in our foreign exchange rate assumption and the progress in our profit improvement activities, such as cost reduction efforts,” Toyota’s managing officer Takuo Sasaki said in a statement.
