Key facts
- Toyota Motor is looking beyond its affiliated Japanese keiretsu suppliers to local Chinese companies for EV parts, Nikkei Asia reported.
- The report says the sourcing shift aims to reduce the cost of electric vehicles in China.
- Toyota is described as racing to keep pace with Chinese rivals in electric vehicles.
- The report says Toyota holds on to a hybrid edge, which it describes as buying time for its EV push.
Toyota Motor is reshaping its supply chain in China, looking beyond its traditional network of affiliated Japanese suppliers, known as keiretsu, to local companies for electric vehicles, Nikkei Asia reported on November 13, 2026.
The report says the automaker is moving ahead to source parts from local companies to reduce the cost of electric vehicles in China, as it races to keep pace with Chinese rivals. It also says Toyota holds on to an edge in hybrids, which the report describes as buying time for its EV counteroffensive.
The report does not name the local suppliers involved, the parts affected, the size of any cost saving or the value of the sourcing shift.