The global car industry is showing further signs of trouble, as Toyota has just announced a cut in its 2008 sales forecast. The revised sales forecast also means the carmaker will diminish production at its main subsidiary, Toyota Industries, for the first time in seven years.
Toyota, which recently became the world’s leading vehicle producer, said it expects to sell in the scope of 9.5 million cars and trucks in 2008. That figure represented a cut of 350,000 vehicles, or 3.5 per cent of total production, compared to the 9.85 million units the company had estimated to sell in earlier sales forecasts.
While such a lowering of sights may seem like commonplace for a company aware of the marketplace, for some analysts, this move is another sign of the impending doom of the automobile industry.
Putting the reduction in perspective is important, as even with the reduction in estimated sales, Toyota’s sales figures estimates are higher than those of last year and are up 1% from last year’s figures.
The sales figures may be enough to deter some hardcore analysts from banking on Toyota, but for the rest of us it still appears that the automaker has things well at hand. Leading the world in automobile sales, Toyota has become a company that can be trusted, from each certified Toyota dealer on down, to produce quality cars that are good for the environment and the gas bill.
