CAMRY: A BEST SELLER IN HEARTLAND USA AND AUSTRALIA

The popular Toyota Camry has helped Australia and the US forge a new type of trans-Pacific alliance.

In Australia, Camry has extended its reign as the top-selling mid-size car and the largest and most valuable automotive export.

Official sales figures for the first half of the year show Camry accounts for almost one-third of all sales in its market segment.

Customer deliveries, which include petrol and petrol-electric hybrid versions, are more than two-and-a-half times those of the closest competitor.

By December 31, the sales trend is expected to see Camry confirmed as Australia's most popular mid-size car for the 18th year in a row.

On the other side of the Pacific, Camry is the best-selling car in the world's biggest auto market.

Camry topped 147,000 sales in the US for the six months to the end of June - a lead of more than 10,300 over its nearest rival.

In third place was Corolla, fewer than 1,000 units from achieving a winning Toyota double.

Camry's latest success in the US - the car's biggest market globally - comes after nine consecutive years as the number one seller.

China is the second biggest market for Camry, accounting for more than 20 per cent of global sales.

Australia comes in third, but domestic sales are only part of the story.

Camry sedans built here are also exported to the Middle East, a market which accounts for more than 10 per cent of Camry's global sales.

Cumulative global sales of Camry have now exceeded 13 million.

Meanwhile, Toyota's Prius was the best-selling vehicle in Japan last month with more than 19,400 sales - 3,000 ahead of its closest rival.

Last year, Prius sales in Japan were a record 315,669 - breaking Japan's annual sales record for a single model.

The previous record was 300,008 units by Toyota's Corolla in 1990.