Toyota Motor Corp. confirmed that its chairman Fujio Cho met with Ford Motor Co. President and CEO Alan Mulally in Tokyo. However, Toyota denies the report written in Japanese newspaper that it was starting negotiations with the ailing automaker.

Toyota spokesperson Yasue Kato said Cho and Mulally “met and exchanged greetings,” but she refused to give further details including when and where the talks took place. Kato added that Toyota “regularly holds meetings with other automakers when the opportunity presents itself.” On one hand, Tom Hoyt, Ford's spokesperson said, "We meet regularly with other automakers on a variety of topics of mutual interest. We don’t discuss the content of these meetings.”

According to Kyodo News agency the meeting of the mentioned auto giants was held at Ford’s request. The source of the news was an unidentified Toyota official. Kyodo and the Nihon Keizai news also reported that the talks appear to have focused on how the two companies can strengthen cooperation in environmental technology.

Toyota is obviously performing well in the automotive industry. For the last quarter of the year, Toyota earned $3.44 billion while Ford lost $5.8 billion. Toyota, Japan's No.1 automaker is deemed a leader in auto advancements. Toyota Camry OEM parts are incomparable. Toyota parts for Prius are also making a remarkable reputation. Prius topped the 2007 U.S. government’s annual top-10 fuel economy list released in October. Other Toyota vehicles have already established quality and reliability.

Toyota has licensed several hybrid system patents to Ford in March 2004. However, Ford did not escape a bleak future that is about to doom its existence in the auto industry. Today, Ford is facing major restructuring efforts because of the tough business competition. The automaker has admitted that it lags behind auto giants offering the right formula for the choosy car aficionados. Most of these auto giants are putting emphasis on fuel efficiency. They have released fuel-efficient vehicles to satisfy the mounting demands for the same. Susan Cischke, Ford's vice president for environmental and safety engineering, previously stated that the automaker sees ecological technology as crucial. Hence, Ford is now endeavoring to incorporate ecological technology with the latest advancements and demands.