Toyota delays Australian manufacturing decision until H2

Final decision depends on the new government's commitment to further funding to support the production initiatives of global automakers.

Toyota's Australian unit has announced that it may delay a decision regarding its manufacturing future in the country until the second half of this year, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. The announcement follows the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries' (FCAI) call on the Australian government to reassess the country's free-trade agreement (FTA), because the FCAI believes that the FTA is hampering the growth of local automakers and suppliers. Toyota is working towards stripping USD3,800 from the production cost of each unit of its Camry sedan, which the company manufactures at its Altona plant in Melbourne, with the aim of making the plant competitive with eight other Toyota plants in other countries that also produce the Camry.