Toyota mulls hiking car prices in Japan - Nikkei
TOKYO, June 27 (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) is considering raising the prices of passenger vehicles sold in Japan as higher steel and other raw materials costs weigh heavily on its profits, the Nikkei business daily said on Friday.
Toyota, the world's largest automaker, may go so far as to raise the prices of all vehicles at once and will make a final decision as early as next month, the paper said.
"We'll make a final decision after evaluating April-June sales and production costs," a top Toyota official was quoted by the Nikkei.
Price increases by the industry leader will likely prompt other major automakers to follow suit, the paper said.
Just a few days earlier, Nissan Motor Co (7201.T) Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn said Japan's No. 3 automaker would likely lift car prices in Japan to offset a surge in the price of raw materials such as steel. [ID:nT270323]
But he suggested that Nissan might wait for Toyota to raise prices first: "It's very, very difficult to move in a market without somehow the leader of the market (making a) move." (Reporting by Aiko Hayashi; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
