Toyota to resume full European output in June
David Jolley
Automotive News Europe -- May 17, 2011 12:59 CET

Toyota Motor Corp.'s European output will return to pre-earthquake levels on June 1, following the resolution of parts supply problems in Japan and the resumption of full production at five European plants, the company said on Tuesday.

In May, Toyota Motor Europe reduced output at five production facilities in the UK, Turkey, Poland and France due to parts shortages. The factories build the Avensis, Auris, Verso and Yaris models, as well as engines.

"Even though this catastrophe has had a significant impact on Japan's economy and Toyota's operations, we are strongly committed to overcome it," Didier Leroy, CEO of Toyota Europe said in a statement. "I want to thank our suppliers for working hard to resolve the supply issues caused by the earthquake and our customers for their patience and understanding," he added.

Following the European production restart and an increase in Japanese output, delivery times for vehicles within Europe are also expected to normalize, Toyota said in the statement.

Japanese sales in Europe

In the first four months, Toyota including its Lexus brand sold 215,167 cars in the EU and EFTA region, according to ACEA, the European automakers association, a fall of 3 percent over 2010 figures. In April the company sold 47,314 units, a drop of 28 cars in year-on-year sales.

Japanese rival Nissan Motor Co. sold 167,022 cars inin the EU and EFTA between January and the end of April, a rise of 20 percent over the previous year. In April, European sales grew 14 percent to 37,115 for the automaker.

Honda Motor Co.'s sales in the region dropped 17 percent in the first four months of the year to 58,971 cars and in April they fell by 34 percent to 9,920 units.

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