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Toyota shocks with first loss
08.05.09
Toyota stunned the world's stricken car industry today by reporting its first-ever annual loss and predicting worse to come in the year ahead.
The Japanese car giant is widely seen as one of the most efficient and innovative in the industry, particularly due to the speed with which it reacted to shrinking demand in the US for gas guzzlers by switching production to small and fuel-efficient cars such as the Prius.
But today it forecast losses next year almost twice as big as analysts predicted and lowered its dividend.
It said losses of 436 billion yen (£2.9 billion) last year will rise to 550 billion yen in the year to March 2010.
