TOYOTA

Toyota Motor Corp. on Monday started production at its new plant in Tianjin, China, putting it in the lead of all Japanese automakers in terms of production capacity in China.

Major Japanese automakers are focusing on boosting their production bases in the U.S. to meet strong demand for Japanese cars and avoid trade disputes, reports Kyodo news service.

While General Motors Corp. and Toyota Motor Co. both say that being profitable and providing the cars that people want to buy is their priority, the question of who will be number one in vehicle sales has nevertheless attracted a great deal of attention.

Ford Motor Co. (F, NYSE) said on Friday that U.S. auto sales fell by 9.7 percent for the current quarter compared to a year ago. The company also lowered its North American production estimate by 2.5 percent.

U.S automakers face a widening gap in profitability per vehicle compared to their major Japanese rivals because of missed design opportunities, heavy discounting and high labor costs, a study released on Monday said.

Asian carmakers aim to churn out higher profits in Europe by moving up-market now that they have established a solid foothold in the region, while their local rivals struggle with excess inventories and restructuring costs.

NXT Plc, provider of sound solutions, today announced it’s Preliminary Results for the year ended 30th June 2006.

Production at Japanese auto makers' factories in Thailand was disrupted on Wednesday after the country's armed forces seized power in Bangkok, with Nissan Motor Co., Mazda Motor Corp. and others calling off work for the day.

Toyota Kirloskar Motor Limited (TKML), a joint venture between Toyota Motor Corporation and the Kirloskar Group, has initiated a rural drinking water project for the residents of Ramanagara town in collaboration with the Karnataka government.

U.S. auto sales have been slipping as domestic automakers have struggled to boost sales amid high gas prices this year - a trend that will continue into next year, industry executives and analysts said.

Expectations of a halt in the Federal Reserve's two-year campaign of interest rate rises kept the dollar near two-month lows on Tuesday, while auto firms led stocks higher in Asia and Europe.

Toyota released its fiscal first quarter earnings report for 2006 on Thursday, announcing a rise in net profit due to increased demand for its fuel efficient vehicles in the U.S. market.

General Motor's bid to turn around its massive ship towards profitability is starting to show some results. However the company is taking very heavy losses on the way.

General Motors Corp Chief Executive Rick Wagoner insisted on Tuesday he planned to keep his job even if the U.S. carmaker strikes a three-way alliance with rivals Renault SA and Nissan Motor Co.

The head of Honda Motor Co. said on Thursday that sales in North America were stronger than anticipated as customers flocked to its fuel-efficient cars, while demand in the lackluster Japanese market was in line with expectations.

Toyota Motor Corp. will double Camry sedan production capacity at its joint venture with China in the province of Guangzhou to 200,000 units by the end of this year, according to Reuters.

Along with rising gasoline prices, Americans are going to have to deal this summer with higher costs for cooling their homes.