June 11, 2007 -- Japanese automaker Toyota is considering building another joint plant in Guangzhou to meet strong demand in the Chinese market. The company announced on June 7 that its car sales in the Chinese mainland reached 33,000 units in May, surging 87 per cent over a year ago. In January-May, the company's car sales in the Chinese mainland market totaled 176,000 units, jumping 76 per cent year on year.
Toyota says building the second plant in Guangzhou in cooperation with partner Guangzhou Automobile Industry Group is under consideration, given that market demand for the Camry model is strong and production of the Yaris compact car series will not start until 2008. Toyota began producing Camry in Guangzhou in June 2006, and by end-May 2007, the company had produced 100,000 Camry cars in the Guangzhou production line. Toyota said earlier that it hoped to increase its market share in the Chinese mainland from 4 per cent in 2006 to 10 per cent by 2010.
Source: Asia Pulse
Source: Factiva
