Toyota Motor Corp. said Tuesday that Executive Vice President Akio Toyoda, a member of the founder’s family, will be promoted to president in June to lead Japan’s biggest automaker amid the global economic turmoil.
Toyoda, 52, a grandson of Toyota founder Kiichiro Toyoda, is taking the helm as the company is poised to become the world’s largest automaker. Despite a predicted year-on-year sales fall for 2008, Toyota looks on track to surpass American rival General Motors Corp., which retained the global top position for 77 years in terms of annual sales.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.