TOKYO, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday that its exports from Japan to the Middle East nosedived to 2,418 units in April, down 91.7 percent year on year, as the ongoing regional conflict weighed on trade.
The automaker's global sales in April declined 3.1 percent to 849,306 vehicles, extending a losing streak to a third consecutive month. In contrast, global output ticked up 2 percent to 831,971 units, a record high for the month.
Overseas sales by the world's largest automaker by volume retreated 7.5 percent to 699,382 units, with sales in the United States declining 4.6 percent to 222,378 vehicles, while those in the Middle East tumbled 33.7 percent to 31,360 units.
Meanwhile, domestic sales in Japan surged 24.2 percent to 149,924 units, buoyed by demand from consumers who had delayed purchases ahead of the abolition of the environmental performance tax at the end of March.
On the production side, Toyota's overseas output grew 3.8 percent to 567,578 cars, while domestic production edged down 1.7 percent to 264,393 units. ■
