Toyota To Leave Oz

Published Date: 10th Feb 2014

Toyota has recently confirmed it will halt making cars in Australia, leaving the country without any local car-making ability.

The Japanese car maker said it would cease engine and vehicle production by the end of 2017.The decision has been made despite appeals by newly-elected Prime Minister Tony Abbott for the continuation of the industry.

Australia has been called the most fragmented new car market in the world, with a small consumer base. It has a very similar population to Taiwan, but spread over a land mass comparable to the continental United States. The Australian dollar's strength has also worked against local production for foreign firms.Toyota New Car Manufacturing Plant Australia

Toyota's announcement throws into doubt 3,900 factory production jobs in the state of Victoria and another 150 design jobs. The news comes less than three months after General Motors-owned Holden, considered an iconic marque among Australian car aficionados, said it would also cease local production. Around 3,000 jobs were put at risk by Holden's decision to quit by 2016. And last May, Ford said it would stop production at its unprofitable factories, with the loss of 1,200 jobs.

"We believed that we should continue producing new Toyota vehicles in Australia, and Toyota and its workforce here made every effort," said Toyota president Akio Toyoda. "However, various negative factors such as an extremely competitive market and a strong Australian dollar, together with forecasts of a reduction in the total scale of vehicle production in Australia, have forced us to make this painful decision."

Toyota began making cars in Australia in the early 1960s.