Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda vowed not to let Japan's domestic manufacturing base wither Wednesday, despite handicaps such as the strong yen.
"In theory, it is beyond the limits of companies to keep manufacturing goods in Japan if they are to survive, given disadvantages such as the yen's strength," Toyoda told reporters at an event to mark the release of the automaker's Vitz compact.
But he added: "Toyota has a sense of mission as a leading Japanese company not to let manufacturing disappear from this country," reiterating his commitment to maintain production and employment in Japan.
The automaker estimates it will make 3.1 million cars in Japan next year, down 5% from its estimate for 2010, and sell 1.3 million cars domestically, down 17%.
Toyoda said the end of subsidies for environmentally-friendly cars was tough, but that Toyota is grateful for the incentives because they allowed the company to it to generate cash until the program ended in September.
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