Toyota had record sales in February

On Thursday, Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp said global sales hit a record in February as it recovered from severe parts shortages due to the pandemic, adding that global production also rose for a second consecutive month.

Japan‘s largest carmaker said that parts shortages resume being a concern. Reuters reports that it coped better than most automakers in operating supply chains throughout the pandemic, so it repeatedly cut monthly production targets last year.

Last month, its global sales rose 10.3 per cent to 773,271 vehicles, boosted by a 53.2 per cent rise in domestic sales. That corresponds with a quite weak February last year when sales plunged because of a shortage of semiconductors.

It was announced that the production of Toyota brand vehicles increased by two per cent to 755,839 units, more than the set target of 750,000. The increase in world production in January was 8.8 per cent. Manufacturing in Japan continued to show a strong recovery, rising 11.2 per cent in February after rising 30.1 per cent in January.

Toyota increased employee salaries to a record

Japan’s Toyota has consented to a pay boost for its 68,000 unionized workers. The famous car company announced its largest wage increase in the last two decades on Wednesday without disclosing the extent of the increase.

Toyota’s decision boosts Japanese Prime Minister Fumi Kishida’s campaign to raise wages in line with inflation. Recently, the companies Uniqlo, Nintendo, and Suntori Brewers have increased salaries. Analysts expect that other companies will follow the movement of the largest Japanese car manufacturer, reports the Financial Times.

Government and union pressure on Japan’s companies to raise wages has intensified this year as Japan’s core inflation, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, hit 4 per cent in December, the highest since 1982.

Toyota said it has fully accepted its union’s request to increase base pay and seniority. The company agreed with the union on the first day of talks, which should last days.