Tag: Toyota

Toyota invests US$198m for production of new Corolla Cross SUV at its Durban plant

Frank

SOUTH AFRICA – Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) has invested almost US$198 million in South Africa for the production of the new Corolla Cross sport utility vehicle (SUV) at its manufacturing plant in Prospecton near Durban. In 2020 Toyota announced plans to invest around US$158 million in building a new passenger car in South Africa, one of its executives hinting that this new vehicle would form part of the company’s new ‘Corolla strategy. TSAM president and CEO Andrew Kirby said that production of the Corolla Cross will commence in October…

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I&M bank and Toyota Kenya ink asset finance deal

Frank

KENYA – I&M Bank Limited and Toyota Kenya have entered into an asset financing deal targeting the bank’s premium and business customers, as well as potential customers. The deal will see the bank offer up to 90% financing for Toyota Kenya’s passenger and commercial vehicles including Hino trucks, Hilux single and double cabs, Land cruisers, Prados, Fortuners, Rush and Rav 4 vehicles, among others. The scheme includes purchase of Toyota, Suzuki, Hino, and Yamaha brands. Under the agreement, customers will enjoy competitive interest rates at extended repayment periods of up…

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Chinese vehicle manufacturer Sinotruk commences operations in Ghana assembly plants

Frank

GHANA – Chinese vehicle manufacturing company Sinotruk, has begun assembling its plants under the Automotive Development Policy by government. According to Ghana’s Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, there are a number of other car manufacturing companies that have also begun assembling their plants and are start producing vehicles soon. Mr Nkrumah said that the German car giant Volkswagen is scheduled to start operations in the first quarter of 2020 intends to roll out its vehicles. The Japanese car maker, Toyota on the other hand, is expected to roar to life…

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Google and Toyota invest in mobility startup to improve transport in developing countries

Frank

SOUTH AFRICA – Mobility startup WhereIsMyTransport, has raised a US$7.5 million funding round from investors including Google and Toyota for further global expansion. Formed in 2016, WhereIsMyTransport is a big data platform for sustainable mobility in emerging markets, which connects and collects data and integrates this information on its open data platform. Its products are used by cities to coordinate and monitor services, operators to integrate their systems, and passengers, who access the platform through apps and endpoints connected to the WhereIsMyTransport platform. The startup secured two funding rounds back…

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Government to ban importation of accident and overaged vehicles into Ghana

Frank

Ghana – Government has initiated processes to pass the Customs Amendments Bill into law to regulate the importation of vehicles into Ghana. Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, the Majority Leader and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs disclosed this in a radio interview on Okay FM, an Accra based Radio Station Tuesday morning. He said the decision to ban importation of accident and overaged vehicles into Ghana is to create the enabling environment and market for the many automobile companies about to establish outlets in Ghana. German car-maker, Volkswagen, Nissan and Toyota are among…

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Kenyan logistics startup Sendy raises US$20m in funding round backed by Toyota

Frank

KENYA – Sendy, an on-demand logistic platform that connects clients to drivers and vehicles for goods delivery, has raised a US$20 million Series B led by Atlantica Ventures. Sendy’s US$20 million round includes an R&D arrangement with Toyota Tsusho Corporation, a trade and investment arm of Japanese automotive company Toyota, whose investment comes from a venture arm the company established for Africa, called Mobility 54. The company plans to use the funding for new hires and to upgrade its tech. “Getting better operational efficiency is super key so we’ll invest…in…

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Toyota Kenya and DTB partner in a new financing model for SMEs

Frank

KENYA – Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) and Toyota Kenya unveiled a partnership to enable Small and Medium Enterprises buy new vehicles. The partnership will allow customers to acquire a car at 100 percent financing from DTB. Dubbed ‘Beba Leo’ the Motor Vehicle Financing Scheme is meant for SMEs, who will get financing to acquire either the Toyota Hilux or Toyota Rush, with a flexible repayment period. According to Business Daily, the deal is set to spur the economy further, noting the country’s 6 percent growth during the third quarter of…

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Toyota records impressive US$6.1 billion 2Q profits, announces $1.8 billion share buyback

Frank

JAPAN – Japan’s biggest automaker, Toyota Motor Corp has announced that its profits rose by 14% to 662.3 billion yen (US$6.1 billion) for the three months ending September 30. The Automaker also announced that it will buy back shares worth US$1.8 billion. Toyota’s impressive performance beat an average forecast of 592.3 billion yen (US$5.42 billion), based on estimates from nine analysts, Refinitiv data showed and is the company’s strongest second quarter since 2015.  The automakers strong performance is largely attributed to a higher global vehicle sale and an improved performance…

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Toyota Kenya diversifies to Michelin tyres for new revenue streams

Frank

KENYA – Motor dealer Toyota Kenya has commenced the distribution of Michelin brand tyres across its service stations to increase their revenue generation, reports Business Daily. This comes three months after the car distributor’s local parent firm CFAO and Michelin was given the go-ahead by Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) to form a joint venture to sell tyres locally and in Uganda. The Joint venture dubbed “Tyre Distributor Africa Limited” (Tydia) will supply tyres to the 31 Toyota branches, dealers and service centers found across the country. This came up…

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Toyota boosts investment in South African taxi plant to more than US$65m

Frank

SOUTH AFRICA – Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) announced that it has boosted its investment in its HiAce Ses’fikile taxi vehicle plant in Prospecton near Durban to more than US$65m (R1 billion) since 2012. According to The Citizen South, the manufacturer has also invested almost US$1.32m (R20 million) in a packing plant to support the commencement later this month of its export operations and local assembly of its Hilux model in Kenya. Andrew Kirby, president and chief executive of TSAM, says the enhancements to local production of the HiAce Ses’fikile…

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