TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Toyota Motor Corp. on Wednesday lifted its net profit outlook for the year through next March to 2.93 trillion yen ($19 billion) from the earlier estimated 2.66 trillion yen, as higher vehicle sales and the weaker yen help offset the impact of severe U.S. tariffs.

The fallout of the tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump continues to weigh on Toyota, with the world's biggest automaker by volume estimating the blow on its operating profit to total about 1.45 trillion yen for the full business year, 50 billion yen more than it projected earlier in August.

Still, Toyota revised upward its operating profit outlook to 3.4 trillion yen from the previous forecast of 3.2 trillion yen, on sales of 49 trillion yen, up from the estimate of 48.5 trillion yen.

The Japanese company raised its group vehicle sales outlook for the current fiscal year by 100,000 units to 11.3 million, citing strong demand for its vehicles, especially for its high-end models and hybrids in North America.

In April, the Trump administration imposed a 27.5 percent tariff on cars from Japan, sharply higher than the previous 2.5 percent, in an effort to reduce the country's massive trade deficit. The rate was later negotiated down to 15 percent in September.

While sales in North America remain firm, Toyota's Chief Financial Officer Kenta Kon acknowledged during a press conference that the market conditions there are "extremely tough" due to U.S. tariffs.

For the three-month period through September, Toyota logged an operating loss of 70.4 billion yen in the region, slipping from a profit of 27.3 billion yen the same period a year ago.

Kon said the automaker cannot just automatically pass on the tariffs cost onto vehicle prices. "We need to carry out careful pricing by looking at one vehicle, one model at a time and by taking into account our rivals' moves," he said.

Expectations for the weaker yen versus the U.S. dollar and the euro, which inflates overseas profits when repatriated, also helped Toyota lift its profit outlook.

The company's earnings outlook is based on an exchange rate assumption of 146 yen to the dollar and 169 yen to the euro, compared with 145 yen and 160 yen, respectively, assumed in August.

Kon said Toyota does not foresee an immediate impact from the recent halt in semiconductor shipments by Chinese-owned, Netherlands-based Nexperia, which is mired in trade tensions between China and the Netherlands. But the automaker is closely monitoring the situation, as it could pose a potential "risk" to its supply chains, he said.

The Dutch government decided at the end of September to place Nexperia under state control, citing flaws in its corporate governance. China's government retaliated by blocking exports of Nexperia's products out of the country, already affecting some major automakers such as Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co.

For the April to September period, Toyota said its net profit fell 7.0 percent to 1.77 trillion yen, and operating profit decreased 18.6 percent to 2.01 trillion yen from a year earlier. But its sales climbed 5.8 percent to 24.63 trillion yen, setting a new record for the half-year period.

In response to Trump's calls to reduce the U.S. trade deficit with Japan, Kon said that Toyota is considering importing vehicles produced in the United States to Japan. It is also considering selling U.S. carmakers' vehicles through its Japanese dealerships.