Toyota Prius success shows Japan Inc can be profitable

TOKYO: Japan Inc isn't dead yet. Toyota Motor, the nation's largest manufacturer, on Monday raised its profit forecast after earnings from Japan last quarter jumped to a four-year high of 143.7 billion yen ($1.8 billion).

That was 46% higher than the average estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg, while income from North America and other parts of Asia missed projections.

Asia's largest automaker benefited from government subsidies that drove up demand for Prius hybrids, and cited 160 billion yen in cost savings for allowing Toyota to earn more profit in Japan than in any other region. That's a contrast to the losses piling up at electronics makers from Sharp to Panasonic and Sony as they struggle to compete against the likes of Samsung Electronics and Apple Inc.

"Manufacturers have a lot to learn from Toyota," said Edwin Merner, Tokyo-based president of Atlantis Investment Research, which manages about $300 million in assets. Others can learn to "stay the course even in bad times, not blame other people or the government when things go wrong," he said.

Toyota has gained 25% in Tokyo trading during 2012, the most among Japan's three largest carmakers.

China Slump

Profit at home offset the current slump in China, where a wave of anti-Japan sentiment, stemming from a territorial dispute over a group of islands claimed by both countries, is driving consumers away from products made by Japanese companies from Toyota to Canon.

Toyota expects sales in China during the fiscal second half ending March to be 200,000 vehicles fewer than the company had expected and drain profit by 30 b yen.