Claim: Toyota Indus Motors is set to permanently shut down manufacturing in Pakistan and leave Pakistan permanently.
Fact: The claim is misleading. Public relations representatives from Toyota Indus Motors confirmed to Soch Fact Check that there are no plans to exit Pakistan. Furthermore, Toyota Indus Motors is a Pakistani company with no presence overseas, which means it cannot ‘leave Pakistan’.
On 25 June 2023, a tweet claimed Toyota Indus Motors is set to permanently shut down manufacturing in Pakistan and leave Pakistan permanently as Toyota had decided to close its plant and leave the country. The rumour originated from a tweet by @asadnasir2000, who cited unnamed sources saying the company was planning to end its operations in Pakistan for good. The tweet, which was posted on 25 June 2023, labelled it as breaking news and garnered over 240,000 views. Many other social media users either shared the tweet or echoed the claim without any evidence or verification from the company.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check contacted the public relations department of Toyota Indus Motors and asked them about the tweet. A representative told us that the tweet was, “completely false and baseless” and there were, “no plans to exit Pakistan or halt operations”. The representative also said that Toyota Indus Motors had clarified the rumours on 21 June 2023, refuting the claim and making clear its position.
Express Tribune spoke to Ali Asghar Jamali, CEO of Indus Motor Company, and Zafar Ali the Senior Automotive Expert who confirmed these rumours originated from a temporary shutdown of production, which is a routine occurrence. This short-term closure was due to limited inventory and delays in opening Letters of Credit (LCs).
Toyota Indus Motors has launched two new models, the Corolla Cross and the Yaris Cross, in Pakistan and has plans to introduce more models in the future. Toyota Indus Motors had paid over Rs. 360 billion in taxes and duties to the government of Pakistan in the last five years and had created over 9,000 direct and indirect jobs in the country.
Soch Fact Check also looked into the claim that Toyota Indus Motors is a foreign company that can ‘leave Pakistan’. According to its website, Toyota Indus Motors is a joint venture between the House of Habib, Toyota Motor Corporation Japan (TMC) and Toyota Tsusho Corporation Japan (TTC). The shareholding structure of Toyota Indus Motors is as follows: House of Habib – 50%, TMC – 25%, and TTC – 25%. This means that Toyota Indus Motors is a Pakistani company with a majority stake held by a local group. Moreover, Toyota Indus Motors does not have any presence overseas, which means it cannot ‘leave Pakistan’ as such.
Virality
The tweet was retweeted more than 2,000 times and received over 5,000 likes, and 1,500 comments. Many people expressed shock, anger, and disappointment at the news, while others questioned its authenticity.
Conclusion: The claim that Toyota Indus Motors is set to permanently shut down manufacturing in Pakistan and leave Pakistan permanently is misleading. Public relations representatives from Toyota Indus Motors confirmed to Soch Fact Check that there are no plans to exit Pakistan or halt operations. Furthermore, Toyota Indus Motors is a Pakistani company with no presence overseas, which means it cannot ‘leave Pakistan’ as such.