By Radarr Africa Business Desk
TOKYO, November 13 (Radarr Africa) – Nissan Motor cut its global sales forecast for the second time in three months this week, blaming weaker demand in China, a faster-than-expected shift to new energy vehicles and tougher competition, as its quarterly operating profit fell 96 per cent.
The carmaker now expects to sell 2.97 million to 3.00 million vehicles in the fiscal year ending March 2027, down from 3.15 million. In August it had already lowered the forecast from 3.3 million to 3.15 million. Nissan kept its full-year operating profit and net cash guidance unchanged.
Results released after the Tokyo market closed on Wednesday showed operating profit of 2.1 billion yen, about $13 million, for the second quarter. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected 54.9 billion yen. The company said the fall reflected the absence of lower US emissions-related expenses that had boosted profit a year earlier. Net revenue rose 8.2 per cent to 3.1 trillion yen, roughly in line with expectations. Nissan’s shares are down 29 per cent so far this year.
Chief executive Ivan Espinosa, who has led the company since April 2025, told CNBC’s Squawk Box Europe that Nissan plans to expand exports of vehicles developed in China to compete with Chinese rivals around the world. It will raise the number of such exports from two models to five, aimed at 12 regional market clusters, in what he called the very near term.
Espinosa said Nissan is developing vehicles for Chinese buyers using local technology, lower costs and faster development cycles. He said the company can match rivals on “speed, cost, and good technology.”
The company is also cutting its global manufacturing footprint and reducing its workforce by 15 per cent. About 18 months into the turnaround plan, it has achieved 365 billion yen in savings, and restructuring has made progress in the United States and Japan.
Nissan’s difficulties are part of a wider squeeze on foreign carmakers in China. In October, shares in Volvo Cars plunged after it reported an operating loss and cited tough conditions in China and the United States. Volvo Cars chief executive Håkan Samuelsson said at the time that the company needs a new China strategy with regionally adapted cars, and that “selling global cars developed in Europe and China will not work.”
