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Toyota Motor Corp. outsold General Motors Co. in the United States last year with new car sales of 2.33 million, clinching top spot in the market for the first time despite a chip crunch.
Toyota became the first non-U.S. carmaker to top the annual sales ranking in the country, dethroning GM that had been the No. 1 seller since 1931, according to U.S. media.
The Japanese automaker said Tuesday its new vehicle sales in the United States in 2021 increased 10.4 percent from the year before as it better managed the semiconductor crisis.
GM sold 2.22 million vehicles last year, down 12.9 percent from the previous year as the chip shortage and supply chain disruptions forced many of its North American factories to halt production.
Toyota’s sedans, such as the Corolla and Camry, as well as its Tacoma pickup trucks sold particularly well, according to the Japanese company.
However, Toyota’s top-seller status may be short-lived as the chip shortage is expected to ease over time.
The new car sales in the United States of six major Japanese automakers rose 8.6 percent in 2021 from a year earlier to a total of 5.80 million vehicles, with a recovery of economic activity following the initial shock of the coronavirus pandemic.
Honda Motor Co. sold 1.47 million cars and Nissan Motor Co. 977,639 vehicles, up 8.9 percent and 8.7 percent, respectively. The U.S. sales of Mazda Motor Corp. increased 19.2 percent to 332,756 and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. 16.8 percent to 102,037 vehicles.
Subaru Corp., on the other hand, saw a 4.6 percent drop in U.S. sales to 583,810 units.
Ford Motor Co. has yet to announce its annual sales figure for 2021 but trailed Toyota by a wide margin in the January-November period last year.
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