Toyota mulls more U.S. production cuts

According to San Jose Business Journal: “With its latest monthly U.S. sales down by more than a third, Toyota Motor Corp. is weighing further production cuts at its North American auto plants.”

“In December New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. , a joint venture between General Motors and Toyota to build vehicles in the United States, announced plans to close down for a couple of weeks over the next two months.”

“In November NUMMI said it would cut a shift from its Tacoma pickup line. The plant has about 4,800 workers.”

Toyota May Cut U.S. Payroll

According to Bloomberg: “The worst U.S. auto market since the early 1990s may force Toyota Motor Corp. to do something that was once unthinkable: cut its North American payroll.

Asia’s largest automaker, which hasn’t shed workers in 24 years of building cars in the U.S., is exhausting options to trim costs after halting work on a Prius plant in Mississippi, idling a Texas truck factory for 15 weeks and planning to pare U.S. and Canadian output next month.”

• “Toyota has 30,000 North American employees spread among 14 assembly, engine and parts plants, and vehicles built in the region made up 56 percent of U.S. sales through November.”

“We wouldn’t anticipate it getting to that point, but we never say never,” said Jim Wiseman, vice president of external affairs for Toyota’s North American production unit.