AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)01/18 Report--

Against the backdrop of Toyota's sales in China reaching 1.6207 million vehicles in 2019, up 9 per cent from a year earlier, Toyota China chairman Daro Ueda announced that Toyota's sales target in China in 2020 is 1.76 million vehicles, a growth rate of about 8.6 per cent.

Toyota not only won the title of top-selling Japanese brand in China last year, but also surpassed Japan for the first time since it began selling in China in 1964. China has become Toyota's second-largest market in the world. Toyota sold about 1.61 million vehicles in Japan in 2019.

Toyota has three major channels in China: FAW Toyota, Guangzhou Automobile Toyota and Lexus, and its sales have all increased in 2019. Toyota's goals and plans have always been conservative, but in the car market continues to decline, Toyota can still achieve continuous sales growth, but also a reflection of its market competitiveness. Ueda said, "I hope that one day, I will hear from everyone in the Chinese market that Toyota is not a Japanese company, but a Chinese company."

FAW Toyota sold 737500 vehicles in 2019, up 2% from the same period last year, and failed to meet the set annual target of 745000 vehicles, mainly due to the unfavorable conditions of production capacity and sales gap caused by the replacement of main models. In 2019, FAW Toyota brought Asian Dragon, new Corolla, new RVA4 and other models, while Crown and Prado, which originally had a certain sales support, led to a decline in sales all the way, or even to the brink of stopping production because of emission restrictions.

With the increase in production capacity of new cars, sales have recovered significantly. Last year, Asian Dragon sold 62329 units, exceeding the original sales target of 50, 000 units; Corolla sold 357800 units for the whole year, accounting for nearly half of the company's sales; RVA4 Rongfang also sold 126900 units.

GAC Toyota sold 682008 vehicles in 2019, an increase of 18% over the same period last year. Throughout the year, Guangzhou Auto Toyota launched a new generation of Lei Ling, Lei Ling double engine E+, iA5 electric vehicles and so on, the product line laying is relatively slow.

In terms of model sales, the eighth generation Camry sold 185245 units for the whole year, up 14% from the same period last year; Leiling sold 221629 units, up 15% from the same period last year; and Hanlanda sold 98506 units, with a cumulative sales volume of 930000 units since it was launched 10 years ago.

In terms of the new car, GAC Toyota Velanda will go on sale in April this year. The car is a homologous model released by RVA4 and complements the lack of compact SUV products. The manufacturer's pre-price is 17-250000 yuan.

Sales of Lexus hit a record high in 2019, but it was pushed into the wind of public opinion by a monopoly fine of more than 80 million yuan, and price increase sales have also become a topic that has long been discussed by the brand. According to statistics, Lexus sold 200521 vehicles in China in 2019, up 25 per cent from a year earlier. The Lexus LM will officially go on sale in April this year, and the official recommended guidance price has been announced. The seven-seat version is priced at 1.166 million yuan and the four-seater version is priced at 1.466 million yuan. Consumers are looking forward to the end sales of the car in the market.

The Chinese market has become a sharp tool for many car companies to make money, and its significance is self-evident. From January 1, 2020, Toyota officially divided the Asian region into "China business" and "Asian business", the two major businesses exist separately, further highlighting the importance of the Chinese market. Toyota officials say the initiative will enable leaders in each business and region to implement the necessary strategies based on rapid decision-making to strengthen and accelerate implementation capacity.

In terms of China business, Toyota plans to double its car production capacity in China in 2020 and expand the production capacity of its joint ventures FAW Toyota and Guangzhou Automobile Toyota, bringing the total production capacity in China to 2 million vehicles a year. In terms of electrification, Toyota plans to launch 10 pure electric models in China by 2025.

Sales in the Chinese car market have declined for two years in a row, and there are many uncertainties in the market, while Toyota's conservative strategy has kept it stable and achieved a rise in sales. With the Chinese business operating independently, Toyota will not be a Japanese company, but a Chinese company, perhaps as Toyota China Chairman Takahiro Ueda said.

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