Toyota Motor Corp. on Thursday retained top spot in first-half global sales in 2026 for the seventh straight year, with its group companies selling 5.39 million vehicles worldwide to outperform German rival Volkswagen AG.

Global sales in the January-June period, however, fell 2.8 percent from a year earlier, marking the first year-on-year decline in two years, reflecting sluggish demand in China hit by higher gasoline prices amid tensions in the Middle East.

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