Oh, what a reeling feeling...

Toyota may well be on track for yet another bumper year in terms of its Australian sales volumes, but the parent company's shares suffered their biggest one-day fall in two decades on Wednesday (October 8) as the global financial crisis continues to wreak havoc through the Asian economy.

Japan's Nikkei business daily presents a gloomy picture, suggesting Toyota will post a 40 per cent slump in annual profit, rather than the 30 per cent fall the carmaker had forecast.

According to a Reuters report, shares in Toyota fell to 3280 yen, which represents an even sharper drop than the 9.4 per cent average decline experienced by Tokyo's Nikkei stock exchange.

Toyota's plight has also seen it lose its standing as the world's most valuable automaker to Volkswagen, reports Reuters.

Toyota is far from alone in its latest setback though, as Nissan shares fell 9.9 per cent, while Honda fared marginally worse, losing 10.3 per cent [Ed: overnight, GM's shares lost around 30 per cent of their value in US trading!].

The Nikkei suggests Toyota may also fall short of this year's global sales target of 9.5 million units -- and this figure already represented a cutback based on dwindling demand for large cars and SUVs/pick-ups.

Although the brand's Australian sales remain strong (if it maintains its current sales rate, Toyota will top 240,000 sales this year, which would be a record), the company is feeling the pinch in the crucial US market as the credit crunch hits home. 

Analysts say Toyota's North American sales this year are likely to shrink to under 14 million units, compared with 16 million units in 2007.

There's still plenty for Toyota Oz execs to crow about though, as the Yaris, Corolla, Camry, Prado, LandCruiser, HiAce van and bus, HiLux 4x2 and HiLux 4x4 are all leading their segments.

What's more, the Corolla, Prius, Kluger, Prado, HiAce van and bus and HiLux 4x4 are on track for record sales tallies this year.

To comment on this article click here