Roundup: Toyota recalls vehicles in Japan, Europe for air bag defect; American Airlines stops taking payment in Argentine cur…

Toyota's latest recall doesn't reach U.S.

Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling 1.6 million vehicles for defective air bags supplied by embattled Japanese manufacturer Takata Corp.

The recall includes 22 models sold in Japan, including the Corolla and Vitz, manufactured from January 2004 through December 2005, as well as vehicles in Italy, Britain and Spain, although those numbers were still unclear. It doesn't include any vehicles in the United States.

Takata inflators can explode with too much force, sending out shrapnel. At least eight people have been killed worldwide and hundreds injured.

The problem has led to the recall of 19.2 million vehicles in the United States, and government regulators are investigating. Millions more may be recalled.

No injuries were reported in Toyota vehicles related to the latest defect, which affects the passenger seat air bag, but a person in a Nissan Motor Co. car was injured recently in Japan.

American Airlines stops accepting Argentine currency

American Airlines said it has stopped taking Argentine pesos as payment for tickets because of limits on its ability to convert the money into dollars.

Airline spokeswoman Martha Thomas said Wednesday that American would try to resolve the issue with the new government of President-elect Mauricio Macri.

American is continuing to operate 27 flights per week between the United States and Buenos Aires, more than any other airline, Thomas said. However, customers in Argentina must use foreign credit cards or dollars or other foreign currencies to buy tickets from American.

Under outgoing President Cristina Fernandez, Argentina responded to a shortage of foreign-currency reserves by sharply limiting the amount of dollars that companies could transfer out of the country.