Toyota halts SUV production, boosts hybrids, as U.S. sales drop

Toyota Motor Corp., the seemingly unstoppable juggernaut that saw its U.S. sales double in the last decade, has come back down to earth.

Stung by rare double-digit sales declines and burdened by a growing inventory of slow-selling pickups, Toyota said Thursday it will start producing the Prius hybrid in the United States and will shut down truck and SUV production to meet changing consumer demands.