Toyota expects profits this year to plummet almost 80% as the coronavirus pandemic hits global car sales.

But the auto giant says sales should slowly recover.

On Tuesday Toyota said it is expecting operating profit to hit just $4.7 billion for the current fiscal year.

That would be the Japanese car maker's smallest profit in 9 years.

The company anticipates selling 7 million cars this year, down from nearly 9 million last year, but regional variations make that number hard to predict.

However, Toyota also expects something of a rebound later this year.

The company believes sales should reach 90% of levels seen in previous years by the end of 2020.