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Toyota's Q1 profit nearly wiped out

Japan's largest automaker Toyota reported a nose dive in profits in its first quarter Thursday (August 6) posting a 98% drop.

The global health crisis has wiped out half the company's sales worldwide.

The results are Toyota's worst since 2011 -- pulling in just over 130 million dollars for the three months ending in June.

The bleak results underline the challenges faced by the global auto industry.

Many factories have already shut down this year.

With social distancing restrictions, sales have also been hit because many customers have been kept out of dealerships.

Toyota again gave a grim forecast for the operating profit it expects to rake in for the year.

It forcasts its weakest results in nearly a decade.

It's expecting its global sales and production to fall 13 percent and expects to sell just over 9 million cars this fiscal year.

In North America where Toyota enjoys its biggest market -- sales have already seen a 14 percent drop.

But the carmaker is not alone -- rivals also saw their sales crash from March to May.