Toyota, Nissan production falls; Honda rises

Global vehicle production at Toyota and Nissan declined in October, hit by a U.S. slump, but worldwide production was up at Honda and Mazda, according to data released Thursday.

Toyota Motor Corp., Japan's top automaker, produced 791,665 vehicles last month, down 12.6 per cent from a year earlier. It was the third consecutive monthly declines on year, following a 1.3 per cent drop in September.

Honda Motor Co. said its worldwide production reached a monthly record high, edging up 1.4 per cent to 368,245 vehicles for the second consecutive month of increase. Although Honda's production dipped 0.2 per cent on year in the U.S., growth in other areas, including Mexico and Turkey, offset such declines.

Global production at rival Nissan Motor Co. fell in October, dropping 18.3 per cent on-year to 278,581 vehicles. Nissan's sales in the U.S. dropped 43.9 per cent due to declining demand amid deepening financial crisis.

Mazda Motor Corp. said its worldwide output rose 1.5 per cent to 120,529 in October, buoyed by a rise in production in Japan for models such as the Mazda2 compact, also known as Demio.