Toy maker Tomy Co. is hoping to score a comeback in the U.S. this Christmas with toy trains and cars that boast a 40-year history in Japan but failed previously to catch on abroad.

Tomy, Japan's No. 2 toy company, which also makes Transformer robots, dominates the plastic train and die-cast car market here.

But it is looking abroad for growth as Japan's declining birthrate — already one of the lowest in the world — makes future prospects bleak.