The success of Toyota's hybrid developments are helping to make the company the world's largest car manufacturer.

According to executives at the company, the firm is planning to expand its operations next year to deliver an 11 per cent increase in output – placing it above General Motors as the world's largest car manufacturer.

Much of the success of Toyota has been its ability to steal a march on many other companies, including General Motors, by investing heavily in the development of hybrid vehicles to cut down on emissions.

Toyota has seen strong growth in recent months and also revealed that it expects to post record net profits for the year to March 2006, hitting $10.4 billion, according to the Nikkei.

General Motors, by contrast, has announced that it expects production to fall by around 20,000 units next year.

In August, Toyota's hydrogen fuel cell hybrid sports utility vehicle (SUV) became the first fuel cell vehicle to be certified by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport under the country's Road Vehicles Act.


Ÿ Adfero Ltd