Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan are negotiating a possible merger

2024-12-17 17:52:00

Japanese companies Honda and Nissan are about to enter into negotiations for a possible mergerwhich could be extended to Mitsubishi, as reported by the Japanese newspaper on Tuesday Nikkei. Nissan and Honda subsidiaries in Spain said they would not comment on the matter.

Both manufacturers intend to sign a memorandum of understanding to explore the creation of a joint holding company, under which the resulting company would operate. This strategic move aims to strengthen its position compared to competitors in the electric vehicle market, such as Tesla and the Chinese automotive companies.

In recent months, Honda and Nissan have strengthened ties to face growing competition in this sector, especially after the disappointing financial results of Nissan, which suffered a 93.5% drop in profits. during Japan’s first fiscal half-year (April-September).

At the moment, Honda and Nissan are in second and third place among the major manufacturers of cars from Japan, respectively, after Toyota. However, both companies lost ground in China, the world’s largest electric vehicle market, which accounted for 70% of global sales in November with more than 1.27 million units sold, according to Reuters data.

In 2023, Honda and Nissan achieved combined sales of 7.4 million vehicles globally. However, they face significant challenges in the Chinese market, which is dominated by local manufacturers such as BYD. Against this backdrop, the two companies have intensified their cooperation: in March they agreed to collaborate in electric vehicle activities, and in August they expanded their alliance to include the joint development of batteries, electric axles and other key technologies.

Details of both companies’ shareholdings in the new holding company and other aspects of the agreement will be finalized later. If completed, this merger could be the largest in the automotive sector since the union of Fiat Chrysler and PSA in 2021, which created Stellantis, one of the largest automotive groups in the world and the second largest in Europe, with brands such as Peugeot, Citroën, Opel, Fiat, Jeep and Maserati.