AFP reported that Toyota has slashed its full year net profit forecast by more than half as Japan's biggest automaker grapples with a strong yen, the impact of the March earthquake and record flooding in Thailand.

AS per report, the company cut its outlook to JPY 180 billion, well down from its estimate in August of a JPY 390 billion net profit, which was pared after the Thai floods forced plant closures and caused supply chain problems.

The latest net profit forecast is well down from Toyota's net earnings of JPY 408.1 billion in the last fiscal year ended March 2011. The company also slashed its global vehicle sales forecast to 7.32 million units for the year ended March 2012, down from 7.56 million forecast in August 2011.

The auto giant's annual revenue would be JPY 18.20 trillion in 2011, down from a JPY 19 trillion earlier forecast and the JPY 18.99 trillion in revenue during the last fiscal year. Operating profit would come in at JPY 200 billion, less than half the JPY 450 billion predicted earlier this year.

The car giant, like rival Honda, had withdrawn its earlier full year forecasts as Thailand's worst flooding in decades forced plant closures, undermining efforts to recover from the impact of Japan's March disasters.

Thailand's floods have added to an already challenging year for Japan's automakers, in particular for Toyota as it looks to continue a recovery from the millions of safety related recalls.

Toyota is seen as particularly sensitive to fluctuations in the yen, which have touched fresh post-war highs against the dollar in recent months, prompting the Bank of Japan to intervene in currency markets to tame the unit.

(Sourced from AFP)