Awwal 21, 1432, April 25, 2011, SPA -- Toyota Motor Corp and Honda Motor Co said Monday their domestic production in March plummeted about 63 per cent from a year earlier to record monthly lows with their operations severely disrupted by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, as dpa reported. Toyota said its domestic production plunged 62.7 per cent to 129,491 units, a record low since comparable data became available in 1976. Honda said its domestic output dropped 62.9 percent to 34,754 units, the lowest level for a single month since the carmaker launched comparable statistics in November 1997. Toyota resumed manufacturing operations at all domestic plants on April 18 for the first time since the March disaster. The world's largest carmaker said output levels would be about 50 per cent of normal operations or initially planned volume for the time being, due to ongoing difficulties in parts procurement, Kyodo News reported. Nissan Motor Co said its domestic output in March also plunged 52.4 per cent to 47,590 units. But the carmaker saw its global production rise 9 per cent to 382,704 units by boosting overseas output 33 per cent.
