Toyota Predicts 3 Percent Global Increase in 2011

Japanese carmaker Toyota expects 2011 to be a much better year for the auto industry and said that it expects to increase sales in the year to come by up to 3 percent, as compared to 2010. In other words, Toyota hopes it will deliver up to 7.7 million vehicles in the next 12 months, explaining that the falling demand in Japan could be counteracted with increased deliveries in the rest of the markets.

NPR writes that Toyota wants to deliver a total of 1.3 million vehicles in Japan next year, which represents a decrease of 17 percent from what it expects to register in 2010. Forecasts are more optimistic when it comes to sales outside the home land, as initial estimates are pointing to 6.4 million vehicles to be sold to buyers from other countries.

Toyota however isn't doing too well in several major markets, including the United States. A study conducted by market research firm J.D. Power and Associates revealed that more and more potential buyers are avoiding the Japanese brand because of quality and safety problems that made the tour of the world in the last half of year.

“In terms of reliability perception, Toyota has always done well in the past,” said J.D. Power and Associates analyst Kerri Wise. “A couple of areas where Toyota really took a hit were in terms of bad reputation of the manufacturer and bad experience with the manufacturer.”

In the United States, Toyota posted a 7.3 percent sales decrease in November as compared to the same month of the previous year, selling a total of 129,317 units. The Toyota Division alone delivered 111,077 units, which represents a 3.6 percent drop from November 2009.