Speed Reading — Level 3 — 300 wpm 

Now do this put-the-text-back-together activity.

This is the text (if you need help).

The car company Toyota is shutting down two elevators at its global headquarters to save money. The world's largest automaker said on Thursday it will shut down two of eight elevators at its main Tokyo office. This is to save electricity and to cut down on the costs of operating the building. One reason for this new move is the strengthening Japanese yen. The yen has become much stronger since the UK voted to leave the EU on June the 23rd. One dollar bought nearly 120 yen in January; now it buys just above 100. A stronger yen means Toyota cars sold overseas are more expensive and profits go down. Toyota's profit for the year ending March 2016 was a record ¥2.31 trillion, which is around $23 billion.

A Toyota spokeswoman said the company decided to shut down the elevators several weeks ago because of the rising yen. The company is also adjusting the temperature of air conditioners to save money. The spokeswoman said Toyota took similar cost-cutting measures after the financial crisis that happened in September 2008. That also made the yen strengthen against the dollar. The spokeswoman said: "These policies are not new." She added: "The key objective for the stoppage of elevators specifically is to raise awareness amongst employees, and to remind them of the commitment that Toyota has towards the idea of increasing competitiveness through staying lean and reducing waste."

Comprehension questions
  1. How many elevators is Toyota shutting down?
  2. How many elevators are there in Toyota's Tokyo HQ?
  3. What is strengthening that made Toyota make cuts?
  4. What happens to the price of Toyota cars if the yen is stronger?
  5. How much profit did Toyota make for the year ending March 2016?
  6. When did Toyota decide to close down the elevators?
  7. What else is Toyota adjusting to save money?
  8. In what year did Toyota previously make cost-cutting measures?
  9. What does the company want to raise among its workers?
  10. What does the company want to reduce?

Back to the elevators lesson.

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