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Toyota Announces Delay In Mississippi Plant Opening

by Darren

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Toyota had planned on opening a new plant in Blue Springs, Mississippi soon. But company executives say the slump in the North American market has them worried enough to delay the opening. The plant is being built now, and was scheduled to open in late 2009, but now the opening date will be pushed back further.

American sales are projected to fall to about 15 million vehicles in 2008 from about 16 million last year if declines continue at about the same pace for the rest of the year, according to Autodata Corp., which compiles such industry numbers.

Other Toyota executives expressed some worries about the home Japanese market, which has been stagnant for years.

They said they hoped to attract a wider age range with new luxury minivan models, which bring in bigger profit than smaller models.

Slowdowns in both the Japanese and North American markets are bound to weigh heaviest on Toyota. Toyota also recently announced a number of price increases in North America to offset slumping sales.