Japan: Toyota plans to ramp up domestic auto output since Nov
Toyota Motor, Japan’s largest automaker, has informed its auto parts suppliers of its plan to ramp up its auto manufacturing at the domestic plant by 30,000 units o...
Toyota Motor, Japan's largest automaker, has informed its auto parts suppliers of its plan to ramp up its auto manufacturing at the domestic plant by 30,000 units on month since November, and steel consumption from the automaker and its components suppliers, thus, will stay firm, sources in Nagoya and Tokyo that are close to Toyota shared.
The added units for November appeared small against the cut by 360,000 units globally over August-September with 140,000 units from its Japanese plants due to the disruption to the supplies of auto components from Southeast Asia by the new wave of the COVID-19, as reported.
Toyota's media relations officials declined to comment on the actual production plan in principle, but a sales official from a component supplier in Nagoya, central Japan, disclosed that Toyota also lowered its October production by 10,000 units from its original plan.
Even so, "Toyota's global auto production for October will be over 14,000 units/day, and about 15,000 units/day for November, both being rather high in comparison, and we, as components makers, will need to produce more to be ready for Toyota's makeup for the lost units in the latter months," he said.
Supply tightness in auto sheets should be easing now that Toyota will cut its production over August-October, but "we are stocking up auto components in preparation for Toyota's stepping up output, and overall steel consumption by Japanese auto sector, in general, will not reduce much," he added.
Toyota's domestic auto manufacturing plan over Sept-Nov
| Month | Total Production | Units/day |
| September | 160,000 | 8,400 |
| October | 300,000 | 14,300 |
| November | 330,000 | 15,000 |
Source: Japan's auto parts suppliers
An Tokyo-based auto sheet trader agreed on the firm demand for steel from the domestic auto sector, though he pointed out the uncertainties with the worsening COVID-19 outbreak in Japan.
"Japan's new wave of virus outbreak is getting severe, and some local authorities are proposing to the central government for the imposition of restrictive measures that are as stringent as the first round of the State of Emergency (SoE) in April 2020," he said.
"Japanese manufacturers will have to halt or slowdown their operations and their steel demand will fall largely should the proposal become a reality," he added. Japan's first SoE over April 7-May 25 last year forced domestic integrated mills to bank their blast furnaces with sharp declines in steel demand, as reported.
Japan extended its fourth round of SoE, starting July 12, beyond August 22 to September 12, and the affected prefectures have been expanded from initially just Tokyo and Okinawa to 21 due to the worsening COVID-19 situation a in few rounds of adjustments, with eight newly added in the list to introduce the soft lock-down on August 27, Mysteel Global notes.
Written by Yoko Manabe, yoko.manabe@mysteel.com
This article has been published under an article exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and SteelMint.
