TOKYO, March 5 (Reuters) - Toyota Motor ( TM ) is

increasingly focusing on return on equity as a performance

measure, talking internally about raising ROE to 20% as one

guideline, a senior finance executive at the Japanese automaker

said during an interview on Monday.

While cautioning that ROE is not a perfect measure, the

executive emphasised consistency over time-bound targets, adding

that Toyota ( TM ) was not looking to formally commit to achieving a

specific level by a certain date.

"What's important isn't just reaching a certain percentage

by a specific time, but maintaining it consistently," said

Masahiro Yamamoto, chief officer of Toyota's ( TM ) Accounting Group.

ROE is a ratio that measures a company's profitability

relative to its shareholders' equity. Toyota's ( TM ) ROE reached 15.6%

for April-December 2024, in line with the 15.8% for the 2023

fiscal year. The metric has increased from 9.0% in fiscal 2022

and 11.5% in the financial year before that.

Toyota ( TM ) has long been working to improve its profit margin by

reducing the cost it takes to produce its vehicles, thereby

lowering the break-even point for its consolidated sales volume.

Speaking before the U.S. imposed 25% tariffs on imports from

Mexico and Canada on Tuesday, Yamamoto said Toyota ( TM ) - which has

assembly plants in both targeted countries - would provide

information about the impact of tariffs once it was able to.

Last month, Toyota ( TM ) said a nearly $14 billion factory in

North Carolina - its 11th U.S. manufacturing plant - was ready

to begin production, with battery shipments for electrified

vehicles including hybrids starting in April.