Toyota’s Third Quarter Sales Trail GM’s
Toyota Motor Corp. announced today that it had sold 2.34 million vehicles globally in the third quarter (from July to September), as GM sold 2.38 million during the same period. Also, Toyota’s global sales through the first nine months of 2007 trail GM’s, if by the slightest of margins, with 7.06 million vehicles to GM’s 7.05 million.
At the halfway point in the year, the picture was slightly different. Toyota outsold GM in the first quarter, while GM outsold Toyota in the second quarter. However, as of June 30, Toyota had the lead in year to date sales (4.72 million to 4.67 million).
Ironically, both companies are seeing nearly all of their sales growth outside of their home markets. GM’s sales (with the exception of a few months this year) have been dropping in the US, while the Japanese new vehicle market hasn’t been friendly to many automakers, including Toyota. GM is seeing the majority of its sales growth in developing markets such as Russia, China, and India. Toyota is seeing much of its sales growth in North America.
For their parts, both companies are denying that they are focusing on which is #1 and which is #2, although since the title has been GM’s for over seven decades, it stands to reason that they’d prefer to keep it longer. My hope as an auto enthusiast is that both companies will do well, with Toyota focusing on resolving some of its recent quality issues and GM working to improve its profitability.
