Toyota, Nissan to cut output in China on island row: Report

Toyota Motor Corp and Nissan Motor Co Ltd will cut production in China as rising anti-Japan sentiment in the country hurt sales, the Nikkei said.

Sino-Japanese relations deteriorated sharply this month after Japan bought an uninhabited group of islands in the East China Sea from their private owner, sparking protests across China and disrupting production at several Japanese-owned plants.

Toyota will shut its mainstay Chinese plant in Guangdong province, scheduled to close for eight days from Sunday for national holidays, for an additional four days from Wednesday, the Nikkei said.

The facility, which can manufacture 30,000 vehicles a month when running two shifts, will operate only the day shift when it resumes production on Oct. 8, the business daily said.

Nissan will suspend production at three plants from Thursday, three days earlier than scheduled, the paper said.

The shutdowns are expected to reduce the companies' combined output by more than 20,000 units in September, the business daily said.