--- title: "Dragged Down by the Chinese Market, Toyota Reports First Half-Year Decline in Both Global Production and Sales" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/294666625.md" description: "The dilemma facing industry giants" datetime: "2026-08-03T09:00:12.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/294666625.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/294666625.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/294666625.md) --- # Dragged Down by the Chinese Market, Toyota Reports First Half-Year Decline in Both Global Production and Sales Recently, Toyota Motor Corp. announced its production and sales figures for the first half of 2026. From January to June 2026, Toyota's cumulative production totaled 4.8637 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 1.2%; cumulative sales reached 5.0089 million units, a year-on-year decline of 2.9%. This marks the first time in nearly two years that Toyota has experienced a simultaneous decline in both production and sales. In its announcement, Toyota explained that while sales in North America and Japan continued to grow, the decline in sales in the Chinese market offset these gains, resulting in global sales falling below the levels of the same period last year. The Chinese market was the primary drag on this decline. In the first half of the year, Toyota's sales in China amounted to 694,700 units, a year-on-year drop of 17.1%, representing 143,000 fewer vehicles sold compared to the same period last year. Specifically, sales in June alone totaled 115,300 units, a year-on-year decrease of 26.9%, marking the fifth consecutive month of year-on-year sales declines for Toyota in China. Looking at major business segments, GAC Toyota's cumulative retail sales in the first half were 341,100 units, down 6.3% year-on-year; FAW Toyota's cumulative retail sales were 273,700 units, down 27.4% year-on-year. The premium brand Lexus sold approximately 71,900 units in China during the first half, a year-on-year decline of 16%. Although it maintained its position as the top imported luxury car brand, its sales volume in China continues to fall. Toyota attributed the decline in the Chinese market to factors such as rising gasoline prices and stated that the market environment remains severely challenging. From a structural perspective in the Chinese market, the retail penetration rate of new energy passenger vehicles climbed from 39% in January to 63% in June, remaining above 60% for three consecutive months. During the same period, the market share of domestic brands rose to 71.8%, while the combined share of joint venture and foreign brands dropped to 28.2%. The trend of new energy vehicles replacing fuel-powered cars is accelerating, yet Toyota's lineup in the Chinese market remains dominated by fuel-powered and hybrid models. Sales in the US market totaled 1.2434 million units in the first half, a year-on-year increase of 0.5%, with sustained strong demand for hybrid electric vehicles. In the domestic Japanese market, sales reached 804,700 units, up 4.7% year-on-year, with Toyota noting strong performance from new models such as the RAV4 and bZ4X. Sales in the European market totaled 612,200 units, a slight year-on-year increase of 0.04%. The Middle East market, however, saw a significant decline. Toyota's sales in the Middle East region totaled 218,900 units in the first half, a year-on-year drop of 21.6%. In May this year, Toyota stated that due to slowed logistics caused by the situation in the Middle East, it planned to expand the scale of overseas production cuts through November 2026 to approximately 83,000 units. Regarding electrified models, Toyota's sales in the first half totaled 2.7073 million units, a year-on-year increase of 6.8%. Among these, battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales reached 193,200 units, a significant year-on-year surge of 135.3%, although their share of total sales remains below 4%. Hybrid electric vehicles remain the absolute mainstay, with sales of 2.3309 million units in the first half, accounting for 86% of electrified vehicle sales. Toyota is not an isolated case among Japanese automakers. Besides Toyota, Honda and Nissan also experienced comprehensive sales declines in China during the first half: Honda sold only 205,800 units, a year-on-year drop of 34.7%; Nissan sold 237,000 units, a year-on-year decline of 15.0%. The challenges faced by Japanese brands in the Chinese market are widespread. Nevertheless, with global sales exceeding 5 million units in the first half, Toyota firmly retains its position as the world's largest automaker by sales volume. Growth in the North American and Japanese markets, sustained demand for hybrid products, and a globalized production network remain its crucial foundations. However, the 17.1% decline in the Chinese market has transmitted from a regional issue to impact Toyota's global sales figures. For Toyota, rebuilding the sales volume of electrified models in the Chinese market has become a core operational issue affecting its global scale. ### Related Stocks - [TM.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/TM.US.md) - [TMH.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/TMH.US.md) - [7203.JP](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/7203.JP.md) - [HMC.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/HMC.US.md) - [NSANY.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/NSANY.US.md) - [TOYOF.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/TOYOF.US.md) ## Related News & Research - [GS Yuasa lithium-ion battery wins first LEXUS ES adoption for overseas hybrid models](https://longbridge.com/en/news/294776706.md) - [Toyota's first-half global output, sales fall for first time in two years on China weakness](https://longbridge.com/en/news/294300715.md) - [Weekly Recap: Q1 outlook and production halts after Kumamoto quake](https://longbridge.com/en/news/294743619.md) - [Toyota launches share buyback of up to 500 million shares worth JPY 1 trillion](https://longbridge.com/en/news/294770203.md) - [Toyota lifts annual forecast despite Q1 profit drop on weak China sales](https://longbridge.com/en/news/294771837.md)