The comparative figures from the previous financial period have not been made available as these were based on the Zimbabwe dollar which is no longer functional.“The company’s capacity utilisation has increased to above 60% since the previous financial year ended March 31 2009. Management expects a further increase in capacity utilisation in the next six months,” NTS said.A multicurrency monetary policy has been operative since February 2009. The company now records its performance in US dollarsDespite the current economic difficulties, the company was not only able to recapture some of the lost market, but was also able to produce a profitable financial performance.“This was a result of focused marketing efforts, reduced overheads and other initiatives taken by management,” the company said in a statement.External valuers’ provided valuations of properties owned by the company as on March 31 2009. The directors deemed it prudent to reduce these valuations by 30% hence the asset value is understated by 30% in our financial records.Meanwhile Toyota, the world’s biggest carmaker, has cut its operating loss forecast for the financial year to 350 billion yen (US$3,9 billion; £2,36 billion) from 750 billion yen. In a statement the company said the loss came as the maker of the Prius hybrid revealed quarterly net profits of 21,8 billion yen for the three months to October, against 139,8 billion yen in 2008.In August, it revealed plans to close a production line in Japan for a year.And on Wednesday it announced it was pulling out of Formula 1, citing “the current severe economic realities”.In May, Toyota had reported its worst annual loss, of 436,94 billion yen, in the year to 31 March.The global economic downturn and strong yen, which make it expensive for exporters such as Toyota, have hit the Japanese car making sector in the past year.However, Toyota’s latest figures — showing a return to profit are the latest in a series of recoveries seen at Japanese carmakers, including Honda and Nissan, which have also reported healthier earnings.“Next year will basically see a focus on cost cutting,” said Koichi Ogawa, at Daiwa SB Investments in Tokyo.“They really have to go back into the black next year.”The previously announced closure of production at a plant in Aichi prefecture in Japan — from the first quarter of 2010 to mid-2011 — will reduce output by 220 000 vehicles.Going forward Toyota said it plans to replace the fuel pedals on four million vehicles in the United States because the pedals can get stuck in the floor mats and cause sudden acceleration, a flaw that led to the sixth-largest recall ever in the US.Toyota said the repairs were a critical step to restoring the reputation of the world’s biggest automaker, which suffered a blow when the recall was announced in September after years of making safe, reliable cars and trucks.In plans outlined on Wednesday, dealers will offer to shorten the length of the fuel pedals by three-fourths of an inch (about 2 centimetres) beginning in January next year as a stopgap measure while the company develops replacement pedals. New pedals will be installed by dealers on a rolling basis beginning in April and some vehicles will get a brake override system as a precaution.
Paul Nyakazeya
