By The Associated Press
Published: May 13, 2025
Visitors walk past Nissan signage at Nissan headquarters in Yokohama, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)
TOKYO — Nissan is slashing about 15% of its global work force, or about 20,000 employees, as the Japanese automaker reported a loss Tuesday for the fiscal year that just ended amid slipping vehicle sales in China and other nations, and towering restructuring costs.
Nissan Motor Corp. said it will reduce the number of its auto plants to 10 from 17, under what it called its recovery plan to carry out “decisive and bold actions to enhance performance and create a leaner, more resilient business that adapts quickly to market changes.” It did not say which plants were being closed but confirmed the closures will include factories in Japan.
“We have a mountain to climb,” its Chief Executive Ivan Espinosa told reporters, stressing the task will not be easy, requiring discipline and team work. “Starting today, we build the future for Nissan.”
The job cuts to be done by March 2028 include the 9,000 head count reduction announced last year. Nissan also previously announced the scrapping of plans to build a battery plant in Japan.
Espinosa, who took the helm earlier this year, said the latest plans followed a careful review of operations, to align production with demand, including coming up with market and product strategies. Nissan will also leverage its partnerships such as the one with Renault SA of France in Europe and Dongfeng Nissan in China, he said.
The Yokohama-based automaker said U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on auto imports also hurt its results.
Nissan racked up a loss of 670.9 billion yen ($4.5 billion) for the fiscal year through March, down from a 426.6 billion yen profit recorded the previous fiscal year.
For the latest quarter through March, Nissan recorded red ink totaling 676 billion yen ($4.6 billion). It also said its recovery plan includes trying to reduce costs by 500 billion yen ($3.4 billion) compared to current costs.
“As new management, we are taking a prudent approach to reassess our targets and actively seek every possible opportunity to implement and ensure a robust recovery,” Espinosa said.
“All employees are committed to working together as a team to implement this plan, with the goal of returning to profitability by fiscal year 2026,” he said.
But Nissan Chief Financial Officer Jeremie Papin acknowledged the automaker faces serious challenges. Nissan did not give a profit projection for the fiscal year through March 2026, citing uncertainties.
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TOKYO — Nissan is slashing about 15% of its global work force, or about 20,000 employees, as the Japanese automaker reported a loss Tuesday for the fiscal year that just ended amid slipping vehicle sales in China and other nations, and towering restructuring costs.
Nissan Motor Corp. said it will reduce the number of its auto plants to 10 from 17, under what it called its recovery plan to carry out “decisive and bold actions to enhance performance and create a leaner, more resilient business that adapts quickly to market changes.” It did not say which plants were being closed but confirmed the closures will include factories in Japan.
“We have a mountain to climb,” its Chief Executive Ivan Espinosa told reporters, stressing the task will not be easy, requiring discipline and team work. “Starting today, we build the future for Nissan.”
The job cuts to be done by March 2028 include the 9,000 head count reduction announced last year. Nissan also previously announced the scrapping of plans to build a battery plant in Japan.
Espinosa, who took the helm earlier this year, said the latest plans followed a careful review of operations, to align production with demand, including coming up with market and product strategies. Nissan will also leverage its partnerships such as the one with Renault SA of France in Europe and Dongfeng Nissan in China, he said.
The Yokohama-based automaker said U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on auto imports also hurt its results.
Nissan racked up a loss of 670.9 billion yen ($4.5 billion) for the fiscal year through March, down from a 426.6 billion yen profit recorded the previous fiscal year.
For the latest quarter through March, Nissan recorded red ink totaling 676 billion yen ($4.6 billion). It also said its recovery plan includes trying to reduce costs by 500 billion yen ($3.4 billion) compared to current costs.
“As new management, we are taking a prudent approach to reassess our targets and actively seek every possible opportunity to implement and ensure a robust recovery,” Espinosa said.
“All employees are committed to working together as a team to implement this plan, with the goal of returning to profitability by fiscal year 2026,” he said.
But Nissan Chief Financial Officer Jeremie Papin acknowledged the automaker faces serious challenges. Nissan did not give a profit projection for the fiscal year through March 2026, citing uncertainties.
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Yuri Kageyama, The Associated Press
Nissan posts $4.5 billion annual net loss, says to cut 20,000 jobs
By AFP
May 13, 2025
Like many peers, Nissan is finding it difficult to compete against Chinese electric vehicle brands - Copyright AFP Hector RETAMAL
Kyoko HASEGAWA, Tomohiro OSAKI
Japan’s Nissan posted a huge annual net loss of $4.5 billion on Tuesday while confirming reports that it plans to cut 15 percent of its global workforce and warning about the possible impact of US tariffs.
The carmaker, whose mooted merger with Honda collapsed earlier this year, is heavily indebted and engaged in an expensive business restructuring plan.
Nissan reported a net loss of 671 billion yen for 2024-25 but did not issue a net profit forecast for the financial year that began in April. It did say, however, that it expects sales of 12.5 trillion yen in 2025-26.
“The uncertain nature of US tariff measures makes it difficult for us to rationally estimate our full-year forecast for operating profit and net profit, and therefore we have left those figures unspecified,” CEO Ivan Espinosa told reporters.
“Nissan must prioritise self-improvement with greater urgency and speed.”
The company’s worst ever full-year net loss was 684 billion yen in 1999-2000, during a financial crisis that birthed its rocky partnership with French automaker Renault.
The company’s shares closed three percent higher on Tuesday after reports, later confirmed by Nissan, said it was planning a total of 20,000 job cuts worldwide.
As part of recovery efforts Nissan also said it would “consolidate its vehicle production plants from 17 to 10 by fiscal year 2027”.
Like many peers, Nissan is finding it difficult to compete against Chinese electric vehicle brands, while its profits are also under threat from US tariffs.
“In China, we will strengthen our market performance by unleashing multiple new-energy vehicles,” it said in a statement.
The possible merger with Japanese rival Honda had been seen as a potential lifeline but talks collapsed in February when the latter proposed making Nissan a subsidiary instead of integrating under a holding firm.
Nissan has faced numerous speed bumps in recent years — including the 2018 arrest of former boss Carlos Ghosn, who later fled Japan concealed in an audio equipment box.
The automaker, whose shares have tanked nearly 40 percent over the past year, appointed Espinosa CEO in March.
Ratings agencies have downgraded the firm to junk, with Moody’s citing its “weak profitability” and “ageing model portfolio”.
And this month Nissan shelved plans, only recently agreed, to build a $1 billion battery plant in southern Japan owing to the tough “business environment”.
Of all Japan’s major automakers, Nissan is likely to be the most severely impacted by US President Donald Trump’s 25 percent tariff on imported vehicles, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Tatsuo Yoshida told AFP ahead of Tuesday’s earnings report.
Its clientele has historically been more price-sensitive than that of its rivals, he said.
So the company “can’t pass the costs on to consumers to the same extent as Toyota or Honda without suffering a significant loss in sales units”, he added.
By AFP
May 13, 2025
Like many peers, Nissan is finding it difficult to compete against Chinese electric vehicle brands - Copyright AFP Hector RETAMAL
Kyoko HASEGAWA, Tomohiro OSAKI
Japan’s Nissan posted a huge annual net loss of $4.5 billion on Tuesday while confirming reports that it plans to cut 15 percent of its global workforce and warning about the possible impact of US tariffs.
The carmaker, whose mooted merger with Honda collapsed earlier this year, is heavily indebted and engaged in an expensive business restructuring plan.
Nissan reported a net loss of 671 billion yen for 2024-25 but did not issue a net profit forecast for the financial year that began in April. It did say, however, that it expects sales of 12.5 trillion yen in 2025-26.
“The uncertain nature of US tariff measures makes it difficult for us to rationally estimate our full-year forecast for operating profit and net profit, and therefore we have left those figures unspecified,” CEO Ivan Espinosa told reporters.
“Nissan must prioritise self-improvement with greater urgency and speed.”
The company’s worst ever full-year net loss was 684 billion yen in 1999-2000, during a financial crisis that birthed its rocky partnership with French automaker Renault.
The company’s shares closed three percent higher on Tuesday after reports, later confirmed by Nissan, said it was planning a total of 20,000 job cuts worldwide.
As part of recovery efforts Nissan also said it would “consolidate its vehicle production plants from 17 to 10 by fiscal year 2027”.
Like many peers, Nissan is finding it difficult to compete against Chinese electric vehicle brands, while its profits are also under threat from US tariffs.
“In China, we will strengthen our market performance by unleashing multiple new-energy vehicles,” it said in a statement.
The possible merger with Japanese rival Honda had been seen as a potential lifeline but talks collapsed in February when the latter proposed making Nissan a subsidiary instead of integrating under a holding firm.
Nissan has faced numerous speed bumps in recent years — including the 2018 arrest of former boss Carlos Ghosn, who later fled Japan concealed in an audio equipment box.
The automaker, whose shares have tanked nearly 40 percent over the past year, appointed Espinosa CEO in March.
Ratings agencies have downgraded the firm to junk, with Moody’s citing its “weak profitability” and “ageing model portfolio”.
And this month Nissan shelved plans, only recently agreed, to build a $1 billion battery plant in southern Japan owing to the tough “business environment”.
Of all Japan’s major automakers, Nissan is likely to be the most severely impacted by US President Donald Trump’s 25 percent tariff on imported vehicles, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Tatsuo Yoshida told AFP ahead of Tuesday’s earnings report.
Its clientele has historically been more price-sensitive than that of its rivals, he said.
So the company “can’t pass the costs on to consumers to the same extent as Toyota or Honda without suffering a significant loss in sales units”, he added.
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