Foreign Auto Giant Makes Big Change Following Trump Tariff Onslaught

Toyota announced Friday that its chief executive officer Koji Sato is stepping down from his current role and will be succeeded by the company’s chief financial officer, Kenta Kon.

The world’s largest automaker said in an announcement that after its new leadership shakeup, Sato will now “focus on the broader industry, including Toyota,” as its vice chairman and chief industry officer, while Kon “will focus on internal company management” as president and CEO. The announcement comes after Toyota has recently struggled with increasing competition from China and struggles resulting from President Donald Trump’s tariffs, The New York Times reported.

The newly announced change in leadership roles is aiming to “accelerate management decision-making in response to changes in the internal and external environment and to establish a structure that will enable Toyota to fully carry out its mission of contributing to society through industry,” according to the company’s announcement. The leadership changes will take effect on April 1, according to the auto giant.

Toyota did not respond to the