Toyota net profit tumbles 99% in April-June

Japan's Toyota Motor on Tuesday said net profit plunged 99 percent in April-June on the impact of the March disasters, but raised its full year net profit forecast 39 percent on recovery hopes. The world's biggest automaker stumbled to a net profit of 1.16 billion yen ($14.9 million) in the fiscal first quarter ended June, despite the disruption caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. The maker of the Prius hybrid and upscale Lexus brand slipped to an operating loss of 108 billion yen in the period from a year-earlier profit of 211.6 billion yen. The 9.0-magnitude earthquake and the resulting tsunami left 20,000 dead or missing and crippled electricity-generating facilities, including a nuclear plant at the centre of an ongoing emergency. Amid power and parts supply woes, Toyota announced production disruptions domestically and overseas because of the crisis, temporarily slowing output or shutting plants. Production is expected to fully recover by the end of the year. The strong yen versus other currencies has meanwhile hit repatriated profits and made it more expensive for Toyota to produce cars in Japan for sale overseas. "In Japan and North America where the effects of the earthquake were particularly serious, vehicle sales declined substantially," said Toyota Motor Senior Managing Officer Takahiko Ijichi in a statement. In Japan, vehicle sales totalled 292,000 units, a decrease of 208,000 units compared to the same period in the previous fiscal year, Toyota said. However, the company is eyeing a second-half recovery as production issues subside, and raised earnings forecasts made in June. It now expects to post a net profit of 390 billion yen in the financial year to March, 39 percent higher than a 280 billion yen forecast in June.