TOKYO, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) -- Toyota Motor Corp. group booked the second-highest amount in global auto sales in 2019, overtaking the three-way alliance between Nissan Motor Co., Renault SA and Mitsubishi Motors Corp., industry data showed on Thursday.
Toyota, Japan's biggest automaker, sold 1.4 percent more vehicles in 2019 than a year earlier, shifting a record 10.74 million units globally to book the second spot behind Volkswagen AG.
According to the data, solid sales in its North American market helped the Aichi Prefecture-based automaker's overall global sales in the recording period.
In terms of models, Toyota attributed its climb to solid sales of its luxury Lexus-brand cars as well as its RAV4 sport-utility vehicle, with the total sales also comprising those of its Daihatsu Motor Co. mini-vehicles and Hino Motors Ltd. trucks.
Germany's Volkswagen secured the No. 1 position for the fourth successive year, marking a record-high of 10.97 million units sold worldwide, an increase of 1.3 percent compared to the previous year, the data showed.
The three-way alliance between Nissan Motor Co., Renault SA and Mitsubishi Motors Corp., saw sales begin to decline in its North American market, roughly coinciding with the time ex-Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn was arrested for financial misconduct in late 2018.
The Japan-French alliance, thereafter, in 2019 saw 5.6 percent less units sold at 10.16 million in total, according to the data.
