Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. led a drop in global auto production as sales in North America plunged amid rising unemployment.
Toyota's output dropped for the ninth straight month, falling 50 percent to 366,125 units in April from a year earlier, the company said Thursday. Nissan built 183,248 vehicles, down 38 percent, it said. Honda Motor Co. made 231,399 autos, 30 percent fewer.
Japanese automakers slashed output in North America in April to reduce inventories as their combined sales in the United States, the world's largest auto market, plunged 36 percent in April.