Toyota’s plan for world domination
TEXT OF STORY
SCOTT JAGOW: Toyota has a global master plan. Sounds so devious. It probably is, if you’re General Motors. The Wall Street Journal got a hold of the Master Plan, and it details how Toyota will unseat GM as the world’s biggest carmaker. I’ll give you a hint: China and India. More now from Miranda Kennedy in New Delhi.
MIRANDA KENNEDY: Toyota already has one plant in India, and five in China. And it plans to build even more to manufacture cars not only for export, but to sell to new domestic consumers in those countries.
Analyst Zafar Momin of Boston Consulting Group told us recently that in particular, the Indian auto market can no longer be ignored. And Toyota has been faster to recognize this than U.S. manufacturers.
ZAFAR MOMIN: Asian companies have been very successful in Asia. For example, if you take southeast Asia, 90% of the market is owned by the Japanese, although Western companies have been there for a very long time. I think India’s now reached a point on the motorization thing, to the point where its going to catch steam and it’s going to go to the next level now.
Vehicle sales in India grew by almost 20% in the last six months. With numbers like that, it’s not hard to believe that Toyota plans to use India and other developing countries to beat back its American rivals.
In New Delhi, I’m Miranda Kennedy for Marketplace.
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