Toyota, Lexus prices to go up

PETALING JAYA: UMW Toyota Malaysia Sdn Bhd will increase the prices of Toyota and Lexus vehicles between 4% and 16% effective January 2016, on increased costs due to the falling ringgit.
“Year-to-date, the ringgit has depreciated by almost 20% to the dollar, thus increasing cost of operations for UMW Toyota. The company has weighed all possible options, but has no choice but to pass on some cost to the consumers to offset rising input costs due to the strengthening of the US dollar against the Malaysian currency,” it said in a statement yesterday.
The car manufacturer said it had implemented strategic moves to protect the interest of its customers in the midst of the fluctuating ringgit, and absorbed additional cost to a certain extent over the past months.
“Since the beginning of this year, the fluctuation of the ringgit has impacted our business as some of our parts and components are imported, resulting in an increase in overall cost of production. We have implemented cost-efficiency measures and reviewed our operations across the supply chain to mitigate the weaker ringgit,” UMW Toyota Motor president Datuk Ismet Suki said.
“The company would have implemented necessary measures to minimise forex losses impact and address the fluctuation of the ringgit, if it dropped gradually. Unfortunately,the sudden and huge fluctuation within a short period, has greatly impacted our operations. Hence, the company will have to increase the prices of Toyota and Lexus vehicles effective January 2016,” he added.
Ismet said the increase is inevitable as there is no clear indication on when the ringgit will rebound.
He said that even with the increase in vehicle prices, UMW Toyota could only recover partially, not 100%, from the impact it has been absorbing until now.
“If the ringgit continues to slide in the near future, we may need to review our pricing structure again,” he said.
Ismet, however, was optimistic that the price increase would not have a drastic impact on sales adding that it is currently on track to meet its business targets.
“We are facing challenging times but UMW Toyota is confident we can ride out the storm. We have strong fundamentals and a proven track record. I believe customers will continue to choose us and our vehicles as we deliver quality products and services that complement their lifestyles,” he said.