The group's market share reached 4.8% for the year. 

Sales of the Toyota brand reached 834,785 units, while sales of Lexus vehicles reached 53,230 units. 

TME sales results were driven mainly by the increase of sales in Western Europe (+4.2%) and Central Europe (+20%), while sales in Eastern Europe grew by 2.8%. 

Karl Schlicht, Executive Vice- President of TME, said: "Our team is thrilled to have achieved its fourth consecutive year-on-year growth in the Europe region, and to continue to do so profitably. 

"This is the result of our strategy to bring innovation and much stronger products to European customers. 

"Our continuing growth in hybrid sales shows that by combining our proven hybrid technology with appealing products like Yaris, Auris, Auris Touring Sports and Lexus models, we can attract more customers to our brands in a highly competitive market. 

"We are also very pleased that we managed to increase sales in Western and Central Europe, and even in Eastern Europe despite a very challenging environment." 

In the first month since its launch in Japan on December 15 last year, approximately 1,500 orders have been received for Toyota's 'Mirai' fuel cell sedan. 

At the time of the vehicle's launch, Toyota announced plans to sell approximately 400 units in Japan by the end of 2015. 

Due to the large volume of orders received, Toyota forecasts a significantly longer time to delivery than originally expected. 

Roughly 60% of the orders are from government offices and corporate fleets, with 40% from individual consumers. 

Orders are mostly from Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, Aichi Prefecture and Fukuoka Prefecture. 

The Mirai's motor is powered by electricity generated through a chemical reaction between airborne oxygen and hydrogen within an onboard fuel cell. 

With its combination of excellent environmental friendliness and fun-to-drive performance, the Mirai has the potential to further accelerate energy diversification and help create a hydrogen society of the future.