Prius top-selling car in Japan for sixth month, AS

Fri, Nov 6 06:10 AM

TOKYO (AP) Toyota's popular Prius hybrid was the top-selling car in Japan in October for the sixth straight month, helped by tax breaks and government subsidies for environmentally friendly vehicles, an industry group said Friday. Toyota Motor Corp.

, the world's biggest automaker, sold 26,918 Prius cars last month, according to the Japan Automobile Dealers Association. That was a big jump from 6,341 Prius cars sold in October last year.

Surging demand for the Prius helped Toyota post a surprise profit Thursday. The Japanese auto giant posted better-than-expected net income of 21.8 billion yen ($242 million) for the July-September period after three straight losing quarters.

The company also halved its expected loss for the fiscal year. Honda Motor Co.

's Fit compact was No. 2 in October with 15,444 units sold, the association said.

Although the Fit isn't a hybrid, it still qualifies for tax breaks because it's fuel-efficient. Toyota's Vitz subcompact, marketed overseas as the Yaris, came in third last month.

Honda's Insight hybrid a direct competitor with Toyota's Prius was ninth.

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