TOKYO, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- Toyota Motor Corporation on Thursday announced record highs in group sales and profits for the second quarter of the year, largely driven by a weaker yen which boosted earnings.
The company, Japan's largest automaker, reported sales of 11.8 trillion yen (about 79 billion U.S. dollars), marking a 12 percent increase compared to the same period last year, according to its financial results for the April-June period.
Net income rose 1.7 percent to 1.3 trillion yen, or 8.9 billion dollars, and operating profit also achieved a record high.
The results came amid a decline in unit sales in Japan due to a production halt on certain models, stemming from falsified test data.
The negative impact of the production halt was counterbalanced by a 370-billion-yen increase in operating income, which was attributed to the weaker yen, strong overseas sales of hybrid vehicles, and reductions in production costs.
Toyota is facing an uncertain business outlook due to new certification violations and the yen's continued appreciation over shifts in monetary policy in Japan and the United States, reported Japanese newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun.
The latest certification issue adds to the challenges faced by the company, which has recently been grappling with the fallout from falsified test data. This has already led to production halts for certain models, affecting domestic sales. ■