Toyota names Lexus chief its new CEO as car industry faces historic shift

Sato, 53, takes on leadership of Toyota at a watershed moment. — Reuters

TOKYO: Toyota Motor Corp made Lexus president Koji Sato chief executive officer, replacing the long-serving Akio Toyoda as the world’s biggest carmaker navigates the auto industry’s once-in-a-generation shift toward electrification and greater automation.

Toyoda, grandson of the Japanese car giant’s founder, became chairman effective April 1, the company said in a statement yesterday.