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Worldwide production of Toyota rises after a year

Toyota Motor said on Thursday its worldwide production rose in January for the first time in a year. The company ramped up output in Japan after recovering from 2024's certification scandal in its home market. Global output for the world's biggest automaker in January increased 6 percent year-on-year to 781,729 vehicles, with domestic production up 22 percent, offsetting an overseas production decline. Toyota's output in North America rose 3 percent in January as a jump in production in Mexico made up for falls in the United States and Canada. Toyota's global sales were largely flat as a 13 percent jump in domestic sales helped balance out a 14 percent drop in Chinese sales and a 1 percent decline in US sales. The company said North American demand for its vehicles remained strong despite negative effects from snowfall in January.

Geely expands access to finance in Indonesia

Chinese automaker Geely has partnered with several leading banks and leasing companies in Indonesia to expand access to vehicle financing for consumers there, according to Geely Auto Indonesia on Wednesday. Through the partnership, Geely has introduced two key financing schemes to assist vehicle purchases for dealers and consumers. The dealer financing scheme streamlines the purchasing process of wholesale vehicle units from dealers to original equipment manufacturers. Meanwhile, the retail financing scheme offers consumers flexible financing options. Victor Gao, CEO of Geely Auto Indonesia, said that Geely's success at the Indonesia International Motor Show 2025, held from Feb 13-23, reflected strong market enthusiasm for the brand's products. "Through this collaboration, we aim to ensure that more consumers can access Geely vehicles with flexible and competitive financing options. We appreciate the support from our banking and leasing partners in making this initiative possible," he said.

Major investment for Portugal plant

CALB, one of the world's largest battery makers for electric vehicles, said it would invest 2 billion euros ($2.09 billion) in a gigafactory in Portugal which is expected to start production in 2028. The factory will produce lithium batteries with a total annual capacity of 15 gigawatt-hours, which is equivalent to about 187,000 batteries for EVs, mainly in the European market. CALB said its first factory in Europe would create 1,800 jobs, expecting it to represent more than 4 percent of Portugal's GDP when the plant hits full capacity. Along with neighboring Spain, the country wants to take advantage of local lithium deposits, aiming to cover the entire value chain from mining and refining, to cell and battery manufacturing, and to battery recycling.

Profit falls 70 percent, says Stellantis report

Stellantis Group — which includes Fiat, Chrysler, Jeep and Peugeot — reported on Wednesday that profit fell 70 percent in 2024 because of lower sales and prices in North America. The group, which is looking for a new CEO, also reported a 17 percent drop in sales to 156.9 billion euros ($164.6 billion). It blamed this on "temporary gaps in product offerings" and on promotions to reduce stocks. Profit fell to 5.5 billion euros in 2024 from 18.6 billion euros in 2023, with the number of cars sold falling 12 percent. Stellantis former chief executive Carlos Tavares quit in December amid differences over how to confront the group's profit slump. It said it was "prioritizing critical launches to better meet evolving customer needs, especially in the US". The group promised 10 new launches in 2025.

Car sales in Vietnam show speedy progress

Vietnam's auto market is catching up in size with that of Thailand, with the gap narrowing by almost 80 percent in 2024, local newspaper VnExpress reported on Wednesday. VnExpress cited the figures that Thai auto sales exceeded Vietnam's by 370,000 units in 2023. However, the figure shrank to just 78,000 in 2024. Thai sales fell by 26 percent to 572,700 vehicles in 2024, but in Vietnam, there was a 22 percent jump to 494,300. This meant it was the fastest-growing of the five biggest markets in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The Vietnamese ministry of industry and trade is targeting an annual growth of 14-16 percent for the auto market from now through to 2030, when more than 1 million units are expected to be sold.

Motoring - Agencies