- Toyota moved 5.39 million vehicles in the first six months.
- China sales dropped 17.1 percent as the market cooled.
- Home sales climbed 4.4 percent while overseas demand slipped.
Toyota has been criticized by some for lagging behind the rest of the industry’s gradual shift towards electric vehicles. There may be truth in that, but its commitment to multiple powertrains appears to be paying off, and through the first half of this year it still sits comfortably as the world’s largest car manufacturer.
Sales data shows the Japanese car manufacturer moved 5.39 million vehicles across its brands during the January-June period. That figure is down 2.8 percent from a year ago, its first year-on-year decline in first-half sales in two years, yet Toyota stays well clear of the VW Group, which sold 4.13 million vehicles over the same stretch. It also marks the seventh straight year Toyota has topped the global sales rankings for the January-June period.
Read: Toyota’s Global Sales Keep Sliding With A China Collapse It Blames On Gas Prices
Digging a little deeper into Toyota’s sales figures reveals that it has suffered setbacks in certain markets, while making gains in others. For example, Toyota’s domestic sales this year are up 4.4 percent to 1.1 million units, thanks in part to the local launch of the bZ4X, Nikkei Asia reports. By comparison, overseas sales fell 4.5 percent to 4.3 million vehicles.
Suffering In China
The steepest fall came in China, where sales slid 17.1 percent to 694,670 units, tracking a broader downturn across the country. The war in Iran and its knock-on effect on global oil prices dragged Middle East sales down 21.6 percent over the same period.
Propping up Toyota’s position at the top is strong demand for its electrified models, up 9.1 percent this year to 2.71 million units. Its electric vehicles have climbed 2.4-fold this year as well, though at just 193,172 sold they remain a small slice of the lineup. Both electrified vehicle sales and EV sales hit record first-half totals.
North America helped soften the blow from the declines in China and the Middle East, with sales there rising 0.9 percent to 1.45 million units.
