Toyota to Cut Foreign Production by 83,000 Units Due to Middle East Tensions

TOKYO, 26 MAY - Toyota will be forced to reduce production destined for foreign markets by approximately 83,000 units by November, more than doubling the previously announced cuts, initially set at 38,000, due to growing tensions in the Middle East and the severe repercussions on the global logistics chain caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. This was anticipated by the newspaper Nikkei, which cites sources familiar with the matter, explaining that the downward revision primarily affects vehicles destined for the Middle Eastern and Asian markets, with direct impacts on SUV models of the Rav4 series.

In this regard, Toyota has already informed its main component suppliers of the new production plan.

On the financial front, the world's leading automaker estimates that the impact of the Middle East conflict will erode its operating margin by 670 billion yen, equivalent to approximately 3.6 billion euros. The group aims to place 10 million vehicles under the Toyota and Lexus brands by the end of 2026, with an expected consolidated net profit of 3,000 billion yen (16.20 billion euros), a decrease of 22% compared to the previous fiscal year. This projection, warned financial officer Takanori Azuma, could be further revised downwards should conditions in the Persian Gulf and the crude oil market deteriorate beyond expectations. Operationally, Toyota plans to suspend the second line at the Tsutsumi plant in Aichi prefecture, where the Camry is assembled among other models. In 2024, before the conflict erupted, Toyota exported between 500,000 and 600,000 vehicles annually to the Middle East. "Almost half of those volumes will be compromised," Azuma stated during the presentation of the 2025 financial results. The automaker's foreign production in fiscal year 2025 stood at 6.65 million units.