Growing moves to tighten rules on carbon dioxide emissions will benefit Japanese automakers that are leading the race to develop greener technologies, but will hurt their laggard U.S. counterparts, two think tanks said Wednesday.
Toyota Motor Corp.'s profit is estimated to rise 8 percent in 2015 from 2003 as a growing number of countries are adopting measures to address climate change, the Washington-based World Resources Institute and the Zurich-based Sustainable Asset Management said in a joint study.
Toyota is a leading maker of gasoline-electric hybrid cars.
According to the study, which covered 10 major automakers around the world, France's Renault SA is expected to boost its profit by 4 percent and Nissan Motor Co. and Honda Motor Co. are estimated to increase their profit by 3 percent.
On the other hand, U.S. carmakers are expected to face falling profits because they are dependent on sales of less fuel-efficient vehicles, the study showed.
Ford Motor Co.'s profit is estimated to fall 10 percent in 2015, while General Motors Corp.'s profit is expected to drop 7 percent.