Toyota's Thai unit sees its local car sales up 7.3% this year

BANGKOK (Reuters) - The Thai unit of Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T< expects its car sales in the Southeast Asian country to rise 7.3% to 310,000 vehicles this year, the company said on Thursday.

Toyota, which commands about a third of the Thai vehicle market, recorded local sales in 2022 of 288,809 units, up 20.5%, Toyota Motor Thailand said in a statement.

The company is targeting car exports of 405,000 vehicles this year, up 7.0% from 378,454 cars shipped out last year.

"For the 2023 automotive market outlook, it is anticipated that the automotive market will gradually return to normalcy along with the country's overall economic recovery," the firm said.

The reopening of Thailand to promote tourism helps boost domestic demand, while the shortage of production parts is expected to gradually ease, it added.

Thailand is a regional vehicle production and export base for the world's top carmakers, including Toyota, Honda and Mitsubishi

(Reporting by Satawasin Staporncharnchai; Writing by Orathai Sriring; Editing by Martin Petty)