The Associated Press

TOKYO - Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp.'s group net profit surged 60 percent during the latest quarter on robust sales worldwide that offset exchange rate losses in overseas earnings.

The world's second biggest automaker Thursday said its net profit totaled 286.4 billion yen ($2.7 billion) in October-December, up from 179.3 billion yen a year ago.

Sales totaled 4.39 trillion yen ($41.6 billion), up 8 percent from 4.05 trillion yen.

Toyota, whose North American manufacturing headquarters is based in Erlanger, sold 1.7 million vehicles globally in the quarter, up 10 percent from 1.5 million a year ago. Of that, overseas vehicle sales climbed almost 15 percent to 1.14 million vehicles.

Last year, Toyota surpassed Ford Motor Co. of the United States as the world's second-largest automaker in terms of global vehicles sold. Detroit-based General Motors Corp. remains the world's top car manufacturer.

Toyota's North American retail vehicle sales crossed the 2 million mark for the first time last year at 2.07 million vehicles, the manufacturer based in Toyota city in central Japan said.

Toyota American Depository Receipts climbed $2.88 to $67.53 on the New York Stock Exchange.

• In another report, Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc., the second-biggest U.S. maker of generic drugs, which has a manufacturing plant in Pleasant Ridge, said fiscal second-quarter profit fell 18 percent on expenses related to an acquisition of most of Endeavor Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s assets.

Net income in the three months through December dropped to $35.1 million, or 49 cents a share, from $42.7 million, or 62 cents, a year earlier, the Woodcliff Lake, N.J.-based company said in a statement. Revenue climbed 79 percent to $374.1 million from $209 million.

The company bought most of Endeavor's assets in December for $35.6 million in cash.

Shares of Barr rose 65 cents to $75.95 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.