Unexpected good news from Toyota

Car sales for July in the U.S were better than expected. That good news was followed immediately by Toyota's (TM) better-than-expected earnings, which were topped off by an up-beat forecast.

The world's largest car company lost $816 million last quarter, which was better than expected. The firm said its aggressive costs cuts were responsible for much of the improvement. Going forward Toyota anticipates that improved demand, driven to a large extent by government stimulus programs, will lead to a better year than expected. The company lifted its full-year sales target to 6.6 million vehicles from 6.5 million.