TOKYO (Bloomberg) - Toyota Motor Corp., Japan's largest automaker, will build hybrid cars in Thailand and Australia, doubling its number of overseas production sites, as surging oil prices boost demand for fuel-efficient vehicles.

The automaker will start making as many as 9,000 hybrid Camry sedans a year in Thailand from 2009 and as many as 10,000 a year in Australia from 2010, it said in separate statements yesterday.

Toyota, the maker of the Prius, plans to boost production of gasoline-electric vehicles as rising oil prices and increasing environmental concerns spur demand. The carmaker expects to more than double global hybrid sales to a million a year early in the next decade.

"There's been an increase in the popularity of hybrids because of surging gasoline prices," said Tsuyoshi Mochimaru, an analyst at Lehman Brothers Japan Inc. in Tokyo. "It's positive for Toyota to get a headstart in these markets." He has an "equalweight" rating on the stock.

The Australian federal government will give Toyota A$35 million ($33 million) in subsidies to help start production of hybrids, it said in a statement yesterday. The Victoria state government will also provide financial support, it added, without elaboration.

"Australian demand for new autos is getting stronger thanks to the country's economy," said Yasuaki Iwamoto, an analyst at Okasan Securities Co. in Tokyo, who has an "above average" rating on the stock. "Australia also has a strong interest in the environment."

The country's new vehicles sales rose four percent to 436,154 in the first five months of the year, according to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries. Toyota's Melbourne plant made 148,900 vehicles last year, close to its 150,000 capacity. It now builds gasoline-powered Camry sedans and exports to the Middle East and other regions.

The carmaker fell 0.2 percent to 5,420 yen at the 3 p.m. close on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

In Thailand, Toyota will spend about 90 million baht ($2.7 million) to upgrade a production line to support hybrid cars, Misuhiro Sonoda, president of the automaker's local unit, told reporters in Bangkok yesterday.