Toyota President: Expect To Gain 10% China Market Share By 2010

TOKYO October 21, 2003; Yoshio Takahashi writing for Dow Jones reports that Toyota Motor Corp. President Fujio Cho said Tuesday the automaker aims to gain a market share of 10% in the rapidly growing Chinese auto market by 2010.

Toyota is attracted to the potential growth of the Chinese market, he said, adding, "we would like to have a 10% market share in seven years" time.

Japan's leading automaker already has an alliance with a local partner in China.

Cho also said he anticipates that by 2010 all new Toyota-brand vehicles will be low-emission vehicles.

He said he expects sales of hybrid autos to total 300,000 by 2005, which would account for about 5% of Toyota's recent annual sales worldwide.

Total vehicle sales in China, including some types of minivans and light trucks, are expected to top four million this year, a jump of about 25% from 2002, according to KPMG. It estimated sales would grow at an annual average of 8% during the next few years, reaching seven million vehicles in 2010.

Cho said he doesn't expect sales of hybrid vehicles to grow significantly in the near future, adding that he expects the ratio of the firm's hybrid vehicle sales to rise to about 10% of its overall sales by 2010.

Economic conditions, as reflected in recent Japanese economic indicators, are looking brighter, but Cho said it will likely take more time to complete the current round of structural reforms across Japanese industries.

Turning to foreign exchange, Cho said as long as the dollar averages Y110 to Y120, Toyota will be able to balance its labor costs, as the company has production facilities in both Japan and the U.S.