It was recently announced that for the first time in over 50 years, a non-U.S. manufacturer was the top maker of cars of trucks. Toyota now claims top honors.
With the advent of well-built, fuel-efficient vehicles, it appears that Asian manufactures now have the pulse of U.S. consumers. With the full line of both small and full-sized vehicles, as well as rapidly rising demand for their Prius hybrid, I believe we will continue to see the share price on TM rise. Obviously, this a very blue-chip play for a more conservative investor.
At this point, the primary risk U.S. investors will face is a potential sell-off in the Asian markets. If we were to see Shanghai investors run for the exits again as they did earlier this year, Toyota could feel the effects. However, since they are traded on most of the worlds major financial markets and their operations span the globe, the ripple effects should be minimal. Though it is important to note that the shares traded here in the U.S. are ADR's, so they are pretty sensitive to underlying share prices.
$116.82 (05/10/07)
