Toyota posts massive loss before Altona factory shutdown

TOYOTA Australia has recorded a massive financial loss — $437 million after tax — as it prepares to shut its car assembly line in 2017.

TOYOTA Australia has recorded its biggest ever financial loss — $437 million after tax — as it prepares to shut its car assembly line in Altona in 2017, following the closures of Ford and Holden factories.

It means that all three local car manufacturers have now reported massive losses totalling more than $1.2 billion combined in their most recent financial reporting periods, in the lead-up to the automotive industry shutdown.

Toyota’s loss of $437 million after tax, from a turnover of $8.4 billion, was Toyota’s fourth year in the red over the past five years and brings the company’s total losses to $587 million over the same period.

The car maker also received $71 million in government assistance in the Japanese financial year, which ends in March. Ford and Holden report financial results based on calendar years.

Toyota’s red ink follows Holden’s biggest ever financial loss -- $553.8 million after tax for the calendar year 2013 — after posting its lowest sales in 20 years and announcing its factories would close in 2017.

Plant closing down ... a worker in Toyota’s Altona factory.

Ford lost $267 million after tax in calendar year 2013 (its third-biggest loss) after nine years in a row of sales decline and the lowest number of vehicle deliveries for the brand in 22 years.

The latest figures have dragged down Toyota’s average annual profit to just $21.6 million over the past 14 years from an average annual turnover of $7.7 billion.

By comparison, Holden has reported an average annual profit of $20.1 million over the past 14 years.

Holden had made an annual average profit of $273 million from 2000 to 2005 but lost an average of $120 million over each of the past nine years from an average annual turnover of $5.06 billion.

Ford has reported an average annual loss of $41 million over the past 14 years from an average annual turnover of $3.03 billion.

Funding boost ... Toyota Australia has accepted about $1.3 billion in taxpayer assistance.

The end of manufacturing may come as a relief to taxpayers who’ve helped fund the ailing car makers while accruing massive financial losses.

Over the past 13 years, Toyota Australia has accepted about $1.3 billion in taxpayer assistance, which is marginally more than Ford ($1.2 billion) and significantly less than Holden ($2.1 billion) over the same period — even though Toyota employs more factory workers, builds more cars and exports more vehicles than both Holden and Ford.

Toyota says the cost to shut its factory total $889 million, including $505 million in asset write downs and $384 million for employee redundancies.

Toyota’s 2500 factory workers are each expected to receive between $80,000 and $120,000 in redundancy payouts when they finish work in late 2017.

Bad news ... Toyota Altona workers leave the factory after hearing of the closure in 2017.

Toyota reportedly loses more than $2500 on each car it makes locally, although this estimate increased to $8000 per car in the lead-up the June 30 deals on the Camry, which was being advertised at a historical low price of $26,990 drive-away.

As with Ford and Holden, Toyota is transitioning its business to become more reliant on imported vehicles.

More than 80 per cent of Toyota Australia’s sales now come from overseas models.

The Toyota Corolla, which comes from Japan and Thailand, was Australia’s top-selling car for the first time ever last year.

The Corolla small car and HiLux utility accounted for half of Toyota Australia’s imported vehicle sales.

This reporter is on Twitter: @JoshuaDowling