Top-selling automaker confirms U.S. investment, but no details yet

By Brett Rowland
The Center Square

The world’s top-selling automaker said it plans to continue investing in U.S. operations but wouldn’t confirm on Wednesday that it will be $10 billion, as President Donald Trump had announced.

Trump said Toyota would invest $10 billion in the U.S. earlier this week on his trip to Asia. But that figure has been under question since then.

“I was just told by the prime minister that Toyota is going to be putting auto plants all over the United States to the tune of $10 billion,” Trump told troops aboard the USS George Washington on Tuesday.

He even encouraged service members to go out and buy a Toyota, a departure from his usual support for U.S. automakers.

“During the first Trump administration, I think the figure was roughly around $10 billion, so while we didn’t say the same scale, we did explain that we’ll keep investing and providing employment as before,” Toyota executive Hiroyuki Ueda told reporters in Japan, according to multiple media reports. “So, probably because of that context, the figure of about $10 billion came up.”

Toyota officials told The Center Square on Wednesday that more details would come.

“As we’ve done for 68 years, Toyota will continue to invest in U.S. operations, staying true to our principle of building where we sell and buying where we build,” the company said in a statement. “This effort aligns with President Trump’s emphasis on growing investment and manufacturing in America and underscores our enduring commitment to U.S. manufacturing, supply chains, jobs, and customers. More details will follow soon.”