“What’s wrong with making money?”“Is making money such a bad thing?”
Toyota Motor Corporation is one of the most powerful and dominant automakers in the world. Today’s Nikkei newspaper reported its earnings forecast for the fiscal year ending March 2026. Sales are expected to rise to 49.146 trillion yen, while profits are projected at 4.2196 trillion yen—a 7% decrease, likely due to the impact of Trump-era tariffs. Even so, these are staggering figures, far surpassing any global competitors.
In June, Toyota will announce its results for the fiscal year ending March 2025. The company has already forecasted a consolidated net profit of 4.52 trillion yen under IFRS standards, a 9% decrease from the previous year—but still remarkably high profitability.
Here are the key figures for Toyota's FY2024 results (excluding Daihatsu Motor Co.):
Revenue: 45.0953 trillion yen (9.443 million units sold) → Approx. unit price: 4.775 million yen
Operating Profit: 5.3529 trillion yen → Average profit margin: 11.8%
Pre-tax Profit: 6.9650 trillion yen (includes financial services)
Net Profit: 4.9449 trillion yen
Operating Profit Margins by Region:
Region Profit Margin Units Sold (approx.)
Japan 16.6% 1.993 million units ← Clearly shows Toyota earns heavily from Japanese consumers
North America 2.9% 2.816 million units
Europe 7.2% 1.192 million units
Asia 10.0% 1.804 million units
Others 4.4% 1.638 million units
Toyota’s full FY2024 earnings presentation is available at the following link:
https://global.toyota/pages/global_toyota/ir/financial-results/2024_4q_presentation_2_jp.pdf
Based on the above, we can reasonably conclude that the Trump tariffs have had minimal impact on Toyota. The company has even stated it will refrain from raising prices due to tariffs for the time being.
Looking at the preliminary figures for new passenger vehicle sales in 2024, Toyota’s 1.993 million units sold in Japan represent an estimated 50% market share overall. However, if we narrow it down to regular and compact cars (excluding trucks and kei cars), totaling 2.651 million units, Toyota’s share becomes a dominant 75%.
2024 New Vehicle Sales (Preliminary Figures):
Total Sales: ~4,779,000 units
Passenger Cars: ~3,993,000 units
① Regular Cars: ~1,758,000 units
② Compact Cars: ~893,000 units
③ Kei Cars: ~1,341,000 units
Commercial Vehicles:
④ Trucks: ~778,000 units
⑤ Buses: ~8,400 units
Looking ahead, as Japan struggles to keep up with global trends like AI, it’s easy to imagine the country growing poorer. In the automotive market, we may see an increase in the ratio of kei cars and used vehicles.
Meanwhile, the global market is heating up. New economy manufacturers like China’s BYD may soon begin selling mid-sized AI-powered autonomous BEVs in Japan—at kei car prices—once they scale up their production.
That raises a critical question: Can Toyota’s current business model—which earns 1.5 times more profit per Japanese customer and 5 times more than in the U.S.—really continue in a declining, impoverished Japan? It’s doubtful, but Toyota will likely find a way to adapt and survive.
After all, no matter how poor Japanese people become, they remain like Urashima Tarō in spirit—undaunted and nationalistic. “We fear not the brutal Americans and Brits,” “We will endure until we win,” “If we lack, we must innovate”—as if the entire nation were part of a single, cult-like group ready to sacrifice everything.
It brings to mind the infamous quote from the Murakami Fund manager, arrested for insider trading:
“What’s wrong with making money?”
“Is making money such a bad thing?”
He survived by taking over Fuji TV shares—just as Toyota will likely continue to thrive. After all, in this world, the majority of people inevitably fall into category ②: the exploited.
That said, one lingering question remains:
Is the Murakami Fund’s money-making model actually creating real value for society? The answer is still unclear.