Japanese auto giant Toyota Motor Corp will halve domestic production for three months and reduce operations at domestic factories amid plummeting demand, reports said yesterday.
Toyota will produce about 9,000 units per day in Japan from next month through April, the lowest level in three decades and lower than what is considered to be efficient production and profitability, the Asahi Shimbun and Kyodo News said.
The company will also stop operations at 11 of its 12 domestic factories for three days this months — yesterday and also next Saturday and Jan. 30 — in line with previously announced plans, Kyodo said.
Next month and in March, the carmaker will suspend operations at all 12 factories for 11 days, the report said.
The move underscores the rapidly deteriorating fortunes of Japan’s auto giants, which have racked up bumper profits in recent years and invested heavily to expand their production facilities overseas.
Japan’s top automaker last month forecast its first-ever annual operating loss, blaming “an unprecedented crisis” in the global auto industry.
Toyota’s domestic output for last year averaged about 20,000 units per day, but the deterioration of global auto demand has forced the company to scale down or temporarily close factories, Kyodo said.
Toyota officials could not be reached immediately.
The reports came a day after No. 2 Japanese automaker Honda announced a plan to eliminate more than 3,000 jobs and to further cut production and Subaru-maker Fuji Heavy warned of its first annual loss in 15 years.
Yamaha Motors also said it would suspend production at 11 domestic plants for up to 10 days, while reports said Nissan planned to transfer production of subcompact cars from Japan to Thailand to reduce costs.
MISINFORMATION: The generated content tends to adopt China’s official stance, such as ‘Taiwan is currently governed by the Chinese central government,’ the NSB said Five China-developed artificial intelligence (AI) language models exhibit cybersecurity risks and content biases, an inspection conducted by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The five AI tools are: DeepSeek, Doubao (豆包), Yiyan (文心一言), Tongyi (通義千問) and Yuanbao (騰訊元寶), the bureau said, advising people to remain vigilant to protect personal data privacy and corporate business secrets. The NSB said it, in accordance with the National Intelligence Services Act (國家情報工作法), has reviewed international cybersecurity reports and intelligence, and coordinated with the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau and the National Police Agency’s Criminal Investigation Bureau to conduct an inspection of China-made AI language
BOOST IN CONFIDENCE: The sale sends a clear message of support for Taiwan and dispels rumors that US President Donald Trump ‘sold out’ the nation, an expert said The US government on Thursday announced a possible sale to Taiwan of fighter jet parts, which was estimated to cost about US$330 million, in a move that an expert said “sends a clear message of support for Taiwan” amid fears that Washington might be wavering in its attitude toward Taipei. It was the first announcement of an arms sale to Taiwan since US President Donald Trump returned to the White House earlier this year. The proposed package includes non-standard components, spare and repair parts, consumables and accessories, as well repair and return support for the F-16, C-130 and Indigenous Defense Fighter aircraft,
CHECKING BOUNDARIES: China wants to disrupt solidarity among democracies and test their red lines, but it is instead pushing nations to become more united, an expert said The US Department of State on Friday expressed deep concern over a Chinese public security agency’s investigation into Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋) for “secession.” “China’s actions threaten free speech and erode norms that have underpinned the cross-strait ‘status quo’ for decades,” a US Department of State spokesperson said. The Chongqing Municipal Public Security Bureau late last month listed Shen as “wanted” and launched an investigation into alleged “secession-related” criminal activities, including his founding of the Kuma Academy, a civil defense organization that prepares people for an invasion by China. The spokesperson said that the US was “deeply concerned” about the bureau investigating Shen
LIMITS: While China increases military pressure on Taiwan and expands its use of cognitive warfare, it is unwilling to target tech supply chains, the report said US and Taiwan military officials have warned that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) could implement a blockade within “a matter of hours” and need only “minimal conversion time” prior to an attack on Taiwan, a report released on Tuesday by the US Senate’s China Economic and Security Review Commission said. “While there is no indication that China is planning an imminent attack, the United States and its allies and partners can no longer assume that a Taiwan contingency is a distant possibility for which they would have ample time to prepare,” it said. The commission made the comments in its annual
RSS