Toyota's China sales hit nine-year low in the first half

Toyota ended the first six months of the year with sales in China at their lowest level in nine years. The Japanese group is being hit by a weaker market, increasingly dominated by aggressive local competition and falling prices.

For a manufacturer like Toyota, China remains a crucial test: it is the world’s largest car market and now favors mainly EVs and plug-in hybrids. The downturn shows how hard it is to protect market share in a sector that is changing quickly.