Toyota Motor Corp. rose the most in almost two months in Tokyo after saying U.S. dealers will begin fixing accelerator pedals this week in 2.3 million recalled vehicles and that production of affected models will resume.
The shares gained 5.5 percent, the most since Dec. 3, to 3,640 yen as of the 11 a.m. trading break. Kits to repair flawed pedals are on the way to dealers, company spokesman John Hanson said yesterday. Production lines that were idled yesterday will restart Feb. 8, Jim Lentz, Toyota's president of U.S. sales, said in a Bloomberg Television interview.
"Toyota's recall was blown out of proportion," said Naoki Fujiwara, chief fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management Co., which oversees the equivalent of $5.6 billion in Tokyo. "If you consider their outlook for the long run, the shares are quite cheap, and you can expect a short-term rebound."
The world's largest automaker on Jan. 21 recalled the U.S. vehicles for pedals that may stick and cause unintended acceleration. The action, coinciding with other recalls of 5.4 million vehicles with floor mats also linked to sudden acceleration, led to a halt of U.S. sales and production of eight models and prompted Congress to schedule hearings.
"We know what the problem is," Lentz said. "We have the fix. The kits are in shipment to the dealerships as we speak. They'll be arriving in the next day or so."
Europe, China Recalls
About 2.1 million U.S. vehicles are affected by both the pedal and floor-mat recalls, said Mike Michels, a Toyota spokesman. The Toyota City, Japan-based company will also recall as many as 1.8 million autos in Europe and 75,600 in China, and PSA Peugeot Citroen will recall 90,000 vehicles from a factory managed by Toyota.
Replacement parts are also being shipped to Europe, Toyota said.
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