First Opera: Japan and the Toyota recall

The Overture of this Opera starts at the beginning of 2010...

NHTSA, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an agency that is part of the US Department of transportation, has received 124 consumers complaints, including four report of clashes. The problems coming from a sudden acceleration of vehicles has alerted the administration which has opened a survey going not "lento" but rather "allegretto"...

The Toyota cars in these reports represented 28% of the cases. the world largest carmaker, which had dethroned General Motors as number one on the market, announced on the 28th of January 2010 a recall of vehicles. This is the first motion of this opera.

For a total amount of 9.7 millions cars all over the world; 270 000 in Canada, 75 000 in China, 1.8 in Europe and the rest in the United States, the firm started year 2010 in semi-tone, rather with the atmosphere of the "Nocturnes" (Chopin) than "the summer" of the Four Seasons (Vivaldi)...

Reliability and quality were the priority of Toyota, but US politician accuses the firm of favoring profit than safety. In the daily Telegraph, Congressman Edolphus Towns, chair of the US House of Representatives, states: "if the cars linked to 39 deaths in the past nine years were planes, they would be grounded". He also claimed Toyota had "failed its customers". Mr Toyoda, CEO of Toyota, explains that "his company had been too focused on growth and had confused its priority". More than the trust of the customers, it is now a real financial problem for the company. Here is the second motion of this opera.

The recall came at a difiicult time. Toyota was struggling to eùerge from the recession and was already suffering from a resultant decrease in sales ans the low exchange rate from Yen to US dollar. After a loss of 3.5 billion Euros during the fiscal year 2008-2009 and a recall of 3.8 million cars in the USA due to floor mat problems too in November 2009, the enterprise wanted to reduce the deficit in 2010.

After the recalls in January which have cost around 900 million dollars, it can be added the amount of 155 million dollar per week, and the stop of the production (500 million dollars, Deutsche Bank). It was also announced that 750 jobs will be cut at Toyota's British plant at Burngston. Between the 25th and 29th of January 2010 shares felt in value by 15%. In addition to the financial problems, the Japanese Government tries to impose its voice in this "music". here is the third motion of this opera.

Yukio Hatoyama, Japan's Prime Minister, has urged Akio Toyoda to respond "sincerely" to US safety concerns at the Congressional Committee in Washington. the CEO explained in Le Figaro (French newspapers): "the priorities for Toyota are the security, quality and volume of sales, in this order. We lost sense of priorities". he also apologized for "any accident that any Toyota driver has experienced". The Way mandates planning for the long terms has alco been clarified in front of the conductors of the Congress: highlighting problems instead of hiding them, encouraging teamwork with colleagues and suppliers, and stilling a self-critical culture that fosters continuous and unrelenting improvment. But Toyoda also highlighted the fact that his firm is in the USA for 50 years now, and employs 200,000 persons, just to remind the Congress that it should not be too severe (the Financial Times).

The Guardian states Katsuya Okada, the foreign Minister, who hopes "the Americans consumers would forgive Toyota", and officials in Tokyo are concerned about the fact that the issue could spoil the relation between Japan and the USA, just when the Japanese Economy starts to live. Indeeed, the Japan's exports have risen by 41% in January, compared to 24% in the USA. But the optimism over Japan's exports was tempered by a report warning that damage to vehicle exports could trigger a fall in GDP. A 3% cut in Japan's car output would equate to a drop of 0.12 percentage point. This could lead to a loss of 50,000 jobs ans seriously affect others sectors, such as electronics and services. The nikkei Business Daily stated: "a loss of confidence would potentially affect all Japanese products".

To Masayuki, Minister of Industry, this story should be a lesson for the Japanese industry: "I hope that the other carmaker would learn about Toyota's storry and will answer consumers' needs". The Japanese Government is afraid of the American reaction, and tries to be on the side of the Congress, even though Toyota could need the Japanese support in this case. Toyoyta could feel betrayed from its gevernment for the moment...the last motion has not been written yes, the piece in unfinished for the moment... but here is a quotation; Toyoda is the musician but is the government music in this case...?

"I've never known a musician regretted being one. Whatever deceptions life may have in store for you music itself is not going to let you down". virgil Thomson, American Composer (1896-1989).

the music piece for this week: the 20th concerto, Mozart, "allegro", for piano and orchestra...

it can be found the calm of Mr Toyoda at the beginning and the fear of the Japanese government in the middle of the piece until the end.

sources:

"les excuses de Toyoda au Congrès", Le Figaro, French newspapaer of the 25th of January 2010.

"Japan fears Toyota recall will hit economy", The Guardian, 25th of January 2010

"Japanese premier in Toyota appeal", The Financial Times, 25th of January 2010

"US politician accuses Toyota of favouring profit over safety", The Daily Telegraph, 25th of January

"Toyoda apologizes to Congress", "My sudden acceleration nightmare", "A giant crashes", "Defending the Toyota way", The Wal Street Journal, 25th of January

"Toyota présente ses excuses pour ses voitures défectueuses", lemonde.fr, www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2010/01/30/toyota-rappelle-des-millions-de-voitures-sa-reputation-est-mise-a-mal