Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A., Inc. said Friday in its preliminary monthly sales report that it sold 157,725 vehicles in the U.S. in January, a 26.6 percent rise from last year.

The performance “exceeded our expectations for the industry,” said Bill Fay, Toyota Division group vice president and general manager for the U.S. subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE:TM).

The full report will be released later in the day.

Toyota’s share price rose $2.58 to $97.95 in New York.

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