Toyota global output falls in May for 4th month

Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday its global vehicle production for May fell 4.1 percent from a year earlier to 812,191 units, marking the fourth straight month of decline, reported Xinhua.

The Japanese automaker's production outside of Japan dropped 7.0 percent to 556,877 cars as production in China plunged 21.7 percent due to stiff competition with local brands in the world's biggest auto market, the company said.

Europe also saw a 5.3-percent fall due to fewer business days in France, while output in North America went up 0.8 percent, Toyota said.

In Japan, output rose 2.8 percent to 255,314 units despite the production halt on the Prius hybrid cars due to the recent recall, as its factories had two more operating days than a year earlier, it added.

Meanwhile, global sales for May inched up 0.3 percent to 840,681 units, with domestic sales falling 12.7 percent to 102,071 cars due to the production halt of the Prius, according to Toyota.