Nissan Cuts Sales Outlook and Pivots China Strategy

Nissan Motor lowered its global sales outlook for the fiscal year ending March 2027 to between 2.97 million and 3 million vehicles, marking its second reduction in recent months. The company reported a 32% decline in sales in China during the first nine months of the year, citing a brutal price war and a faster-than-expected transition to new energy vehicles.

To counter these challenges, CEO Ivan Espinosa announced an expansion of exports for vehicles developed in China, increasing the number of exported models from two to five across 12 regional market clusters. Nissan is simultaneously reducing production of petrol-powered vehicles in China to pivot toward battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids. In Europe, the company has lobbied the United Kingdom government to weaken zero-emission vehicle mandates and extend petrol car sales beyond 2035.

Financial results show a mixed recovery. Nissan reduced its losses to 39.7 billion yen for the April-September period, down from a 221.9 billion yen loss the previous year, with six-month sales rising 8.8% to 6.07 trillion yen. However, second-quarter operating profit plummeted 96% to 2.1 billion yen due to the loss of U.S. emissions-related expense benefits. Despite production losses from an earthquake in Kumamoto, Japan, and Middle East supply chain disruptions, the company reaffirmed its goal to return to profitability by March 2027 with a targeted net profit of 20 billion yen.