Toyota's operating profit falls for fifth consecutive quarter

Japanese automaker Toyota's operating profit fell for a fifth consecutive quarter, but the company has raised its full-year outlook amid currency benefits.

Toyota Motor Corporation's latest earnings report shows operating profit for the first quarter of fiscal year 2026 dropped to 1.06 trillion yen, marking a decline for the fifth quarter in a row. For the April-June period, operating profit slid 8.8 percent year on year.

Despite the ongoing decline, Toyota raised its full-year fiscal 2026 forecasts, lifting its net profit estimate from 3 trillion to 3.25 trillion yen for the year ending March 2027. Still, that would be down 15.5 percent compared to the previous year. The company also upgraded its expected operating profit from 3 trillion to 3.4 trillion yen, although this too would mark a year-on-year decrease of 9.7 percent.

Toyota attributed the improved forecast in part to a weaker yen against the dollar. However, the company cautioned that rising raw material costs, driven by Middle East tensions, and some production cuts continue to weigh on earnings.

The outlook does not yet factor in the effects of the recent Kumamoto earthquake. Meanwhile, some factories in Fukuoka and Aichi prefectures remain idle due to unresolved safety, supplier, and logistics challenges.

Toyota's operating profit falls for fifth consecutive quarter

Offshore duty-free sales in south China's Hainan Province totaled 21.6 billion yuan (about 3.20 billion U.S. dollars) in the first seven months of this year, registering year-on-year growth of 17.9 percent.

During the period, a total of 3.111 million shoppers purchased 17.653 million items duty free, up 11.9 percent and 6.9 percent year on year, respectively.

In June 2020, China unveiled a master plan to build the whole of Hainan Island into a globally influential and high-level free trade port by the middle of the century. The initiative reached a major milestone in December 2025 with the launch of island-wide special customs operations, which marked the completion of the first key step toward that goal.

The move has turned the island into a special customs supervision zone, allowing freer trade between Hainan and areas outside China's customs borders, while enforcing standard customs controls for goods moving from Hainan to the mainland.

Hainan's offshore duty-free sales exceed 21 bln yuan in Jan-July