National News Toyota targets 9.06 million vehicles for 2006

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NAGOYA, Aichi Pref. (AP) - Toyota announced Dec. 20 a global production target of 9.06 million vehicles for next year.

Analysts said it's only a matter of time before the Japanese automaker overtakes struggling U.S. rival General Motors (GM) as the world's top automaker.

GM shares fell to an 18-year low, closing Dec. 20 at $19.85 (¥2,332) on the New York Stock Exchange, down nearly 6 percent.

GM also was reeling from a report that it was continuing to lose U.S. market share to Asian rivals in the first 11 days of December.

That report, released Dec. 19, showed GM's U.S. market share down to 21.7 percent, compared to 22.4 percent at this time last year.

Toyota's share, however, was up to 17.1 percent from 15.5 percent last year.

GM isn't the only U.S. automaker cutting costs. Ford Motor Co., which reported a third-quarter loss of $284 million (¥33.36 billion), has said it plans to eliminate about 4,000 white-collar jobs in North America early next year as part of a restructuring plan.

トヨタ、06年906万台生産計画

トヨタ自動車は12月20日、2006年の世界生産目標を906万台とすることを発表した。

Shukan ST: Jan. 6, 2006

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