Toyota Motor said on Tuesday that its global vehicle sales and production fell for a second consecutive month in August, as declines in China, the United States and the Middle East continued to weigh on its performance.

The Japanese automaker reported that global sales fell 6.4% from a year earlier to 790,743 vehicles, while production declined 5.9% to 700,860 vehicles.

China recorded the sharpest decline in sales, with a 22.8% plunge marking the seventh consecutive month of falling sales in the market. Higher petrol prices weighed on demand for hybrid and traditional combustion-engine vehicles.

In the United States, Toyota’s largest market, sales fell 4.4%, while sales in the Middle East slumped 37.5%. These declines offset a 9.1% increase in sales in Japan.

Production was also affected by weaker output in key markets. Production in China dropped 11.3%, while US output fell 6.6%. Production in Japan declined 1.7%, partly due to the impact of production suspensions following an earthquake on the southern island of Kyushu. (Arise News)