Toyota posts first annual loss

Agence France-Presse

The company expects a massive operating loss of about $8.6 billion in the current business year to March, underlining the depth of turmoil shaking the global auto industry.

It reported an annual net loss of 436.9 billion yen ($4.4 billion), worse than its own forecast and a dramatic turnaround from the previous year's record profit of 1.72 trillion yen.

It is the first time that Toyota, founded 72 years ago, has finished a year in the red since it started publishing results in 1941. Toyota’s global sales fell 15 percent to 7.57 million vehicles over the year.

Meanwhile, Japanese high-tech firm Toshiba on Friday announced an annual net loss of 343.6 billion yen ($3.5 billion) and warned it would remain in the red in this business year. Toshiba is forecasting a net loss of 50 billion yen for the current financial year to March.