Welcome Guest | | Register

| Contact Us

Place an Ad | Advertise With Us | Manage your subscription online

11 Connects | Bristol Herald Courier | DaytimeTriCities | Award-winning coverage | SwVaToday.com

BusinessBusiness

Toyota releases ambitious production goals for 2008

By: | TriCities.com
Published: December 26, 2007

» Comments | Post a Comment

NAGOYA, Japan (AP) - Toyota will rev up vehicle production next

year in a move that could allow the company to displace General

Motors as the world's top automaker.

Toyota has announced plans to up production by five percent and

build just under 10 million vehicles in 2008. That number far

outpaces the 9.3 million vehicles GM estimated it would produce in

2007.

GM hasn't released its 2008 production estimates.

GM has been boosting its overseas business in an effort to hang

on to the industry's top spot, which it has held for 76 years.

High gas prices have boosted the appeal of Toyota's small, fuel

efficient models.

An industry analyst says Toyota's goals are "reasonable," but

U.S. economic troubles will pose a challenge to the Japanese

company next year.