Toyota set to retain title of world’s top automaker in Jan-June

Toyota Motor looked set to retain its title as the world’s top-selling carmaker in the first half of this year, company figures showed on Friday, outpacing General Motors and Volkswagen as it boosted overseas sales to a record high.

The Japanese automaker said its groupwide global sales for the first six months totalled 4.911 million vehicles. That was down 1.1 per cent from a year earlier due to weaker Japan sales following the end of green car subsidies, but sales in the United States, its biggest market, were strong.

By comparison, General Motors’ January-June sales rose 4 per cent to more than 4.85 million cars and light trucks, while Volkswagen’s climbed 5.5 per cent to 4.7 million vehicles, those companies reported earlier this month.

Volkswagen’s sales figure, however, excludes its Scania and MAN brands. Scania sold 37,980 vehicles during the same period, while the MAN figure will be released later this month. In recent years, MAN has sold around 60,000 to 70,000 vehicles in the first half of the year.

Toyota regained the global sales crown last year after slipping to third place behind GM and Volkswagen in 2011, when its supply chain was hit by natural disasters in Japan and Thailand and after a series of recalls tarnished its reputation for quality. Previously, it had been on top from 2008 through 2010.

Toyota’s groupwide total includes sales at Daihatsu Motor and Hino Motors.