Reporter: Handoyo | Editor: Handoyo.
KONTAN.CO.ID – BEIJING. Nissan Motor’s chief executive said he plans to launch a number of new vehicles in China’s burgeoning market over the next five years, including electric cars, which could help Japanese carmakers return to profit.
“The recovery in the Chinese market has been extraordinary, and our key segment has returned to previous year’s levels if not a little better,” said CEO Makoto Uchida at a press conference at the Beijing auto show via a video link from Japan. “I expect this rebound to continue, but we need to watch for signs of trouble,” he added.
Uchida and the boss of the Chinese company, Shohei Yamazaki, said Nissan will launch nine new and redesigned electric models in the world’s largest auto market by 2025, including plug-in electric vehicles and hybrid electric cars that charge with a gasoline engine.
Uchida’s remarks came as investors expressed concern about Japan’s second-largest carmaker, which has warned of a US $ 4.5 billion loss this year due to the pandemic.
Growth in China is a key part of Nissan’s efforts to recover from a rapid expansion leaving bleak margins and an aging portfolio that the carmaker says was a result of mismanagement by former boss Carlos Ghosn, who was arrested for financial errors he denies.
Nissan has pledged to cut 300 billion yen (US $ 2.84 billion) from annual fixed costs and focus on each of the company’s three biggest markets: China, the United States and Japan. However, while China’s auto market continues to recover strongly, Nissan’s business last month shrank 2.4% after showing moderate growth every month since April.
The contraction in sales was in stark contrast to Japanese rivals Toyota and Honda, which have both experienced rapid sales growth since the effects of the pandemic began to subside in China during the summer. In August, sales of Toyota vehicles in China rose 27.2% from a year ago, while Honda’s grew 19.7%.
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