Toyota returns to profit

* Profit despite recall problems * Toyota increases its sales forecast * Good results for other car makers, too...

Toyota returns to profit

Toyota has returned to profit, despite being dogged by safety concerns resulting in the recall of millions of its cars around the globe.

The company revealed it made a profit of 112 billion yen (810 million) in the first quarter of 2010.

Despite being hit by many recalls of its cars amid safety fears, Toyota has successfully tempted new buyers with price cuts.

Global sales down, but outlook is positive
The car maker's global sales for the past year were down by 4% year-on-year at 7.24 million units, but Toyota has forecast this would increase to 7.29 million vehicles this year.

Toyota's president, Akio Toyoda, said: ' There's no change in the fact that we are in stormy waters, but now I feel that even in the storm, we can see a ray of sunlight in the distance.'

Outlook improving for car makers
Honda has also reported a first-quarter profit, while Ford returned a bigger-than-expected profit for the same period.