Okuda Hiroshi (奥田 碩), a former chairman of the Japan Business Federation who also served as president and chairman of Toyota Motor Corporation, died on the 8th. He was 93 and was from Tsu, Mie Prefecture. People familiar with the matter said he backed the structural reforms of the Koizumi administration.
Okuda Hiroshi (奥田 碩), a former chairman of the Japan Business Federation, died on the 8th. People familiar with the matter said he was 93 and was from Tsu, Mie Prefecture.
Okuda Hiroshi (奥田 碩) became chairman of the Japan Federation of Employers' Associations in 1999 and became the first chairman of the current Japan Business Federation following the merger of the Japan Federation of Employers' Associations and the former Japan Business Federation. During the Koizumi administration, he served as a private-sector member of the government's Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy.
At Toyota Motor Corporation, Okuda Hiroshi (奥田 碩) became president in 1995 and chairman in 1999. He worked to revive sluggish domestic sales and led the company's eco-car strategy through the launch of the mass-produced Prius hybrid vehicle. He promoted globalization, including expansion into China, and laid the foundation for Toyota to become the global sales leader.