Toyota Forecast A Positive Annual Profit On The Back Of A Weaker Yen

Toyota Motor Corp reported a better-than-expected 48% rise in second-quarter operating profit and raised its earnings outlook on Thursday as it benefited from a rebound in vehicle demand and a weaker yen.

It raised its full-year profit forecast to 2.8 trillion yen ($24.5 billion) from 2.5 trillion yen, but said that without the favorable currency impact, it was "in substance a downward revision due to raw material cost increases." Its operating profit of 750 billion yen for the three months to Sept. 30 was higher than a Refinitiv consensus estimate of 593.3 billion yen.

Hit by a global chips shortage, the maker of the RAV4 SUV crossover and Prius hybrid lowered its full-year sales target to 10.29 million vehicles from 10.55 million. It also announced a share buyback of up to 150 billion yen or 0.86% of shares.