Toyota May Raise Prices to Avoid Backlash

Toyota Motor Corp.’s chairman suggested Monday that the Japanese automaker might consider raising the prices of the vehicles it sells in the United States because of the troubles of its ailing U.S. peers, Kyodo News reported.

The head of the Japanese business lobby Keidanren, Hiroshi Okuda, who also is Toyota’s chairman, suggested the possibility of price increases in the United States after U.S. auto manufacturers General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. reported weak earnings results last week, Kyodo reported.

Japanese daily newspaper Asahi Shimbun reported that Okuda said at a news conference that the U.S. automakers’ problems could cause a backlash for Toyota and other foreign rivals.

“I’m concerned about the current situation surrounding GM. Although a trade conflict ... may be avoided, there may be some impact” on Japanese automakers “because the car industry is symbolic in the U.S. economy,” Okuda said.

He said Toyota “may need to adjust prices,” hinting that it might increase the prices of its vehicles in the United States.