Toyota Net Profit Slips Despite Record Sales, Ana Holdings Sales Soar
Toyota Motor posted record sales for the first half of this fiscal year, helped by the weaker yen, but rising costs of raw materials led to its first net profit drop in two years.
The Japanese auto giant logged group sales of 17.7 trillion yen or about 120 billion dollars in the April-to-September period, an increase of 14.4 percent in yen terms from a year earlier. Sales were robust in overseas markets, including China and Southeast Asia.
But Toyota's net profit fell 23.2 percent as it provided financial support to its suppliers facing difficulties. The automaker also posted a loss for its withdrawal from its Russian business.
Japanese airline operator ANA Holdings also released earnings, and said its sales soared 83 percent year-on-year in yen terms in the six months through September.
The company recorded its first mid-term net profit in three years, of about 132 million dollars.
It said the number of passengers on international flights jumped more than five-fold from a year earlier in the April-September period, when entry restrictions in Japan and overseas eased significantly.
ANA Holdings nearly doubled its net profit forecast for the current fiscal year through March to 40 billion yen, or about 270 million dollars.