Toyota becomes world’s largest car manufacturer in 2020, company will now make electric car to challenge Tesla
Toyota has again become the world’s largest car manufacturer, overtaking Volkswagen. The company sold 95.38 lakh cars worldwide last year, although it declined by 11.3% compared to 2019. After five years, Toyota has been able to achieve this position.
Volkswagen sold 93.1 lakh cars worldwide. Compared to 2019, it declined by 15.2 percent. The automobile industry was greatly affected by the epidemic last year. Almost every country was in lockdown mode, due to which there was a huge decline in vehicle sales.
Toyota’s success was instrumental to subsidiaries
By the end of 2020, there was a major recovery in most of the international market in terms of vehicle sales. Toyota’s subsidiaries such as Lexus, Hino, Ranz, and Daihatsu also helped the company rebound to the top position globally.
Tesla will be the most valuable, Toyota will also bring electric vehicle
Tesla still remains the world’s most valuable car company. The company took the title away from Toyota last year. Tesla is currently enjoying strong demand for EVs in markets such as the US and Europe. Toyota plans to introduce electric vehicles very soon to challenge Tesla.
Toyota has said that 23 percent of its total global sales are from electric vehicles (hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars). According to the analyst, this number is expected to increase substantially in the future, as emission standards are getting tougher in major markets around the world. Plug-in hybrid vehicles are called those whose external power output is required to charge the battery.
Toyota has temporarily stopped production at its China-based plant
The auto industry is currently facing a microchip shortage globally. Earlier this month, Toyota had to temporarily stop production at its factory in Guangzhou, China. The company also had to limit production of its full-size pickup truck Tundra at its Texas, US-based plant facility. Microchip shortages continue to be a disaster for the automobile industry and its impact may continue until the end of 2021.
