Japanese automakers Honda Motor Co, Nissan Motor Corp and Mitsubishi Motors Corp yesterday said that they are dropping their talks for a business integration.
The automakers agreed to end their deal regarding the consideration of the structure for a collaboration, they said in a joint statement.
Honda and Nissan in December last year announced that they were going to hold talks to set up a joint holding company.
Photo: AFP
Mitsubishi had said it was considering joining the group.
From the start, the effort had analysts puzzled as to the advantages to any of the companies, as their model lineups and strengths overlap in an industry shaken by the arrival of newcomers such as Tesla Inc and BYD Co (比亞迪), as well as the move to electrification.
Honda and Nissan initially said that they were trying to finalize an agreement by June and set up the holding company by August.
The three automakers would continue to work together on electric vehicles and smart cars, such as autonomous driving, the statement said.
In the past few weeks, Japanese media had reported about the talks breaking down, citing unidentified sources.
Some said that Nissan balked at becoming a minor player in the partnership with Honda.
Honda is in far better financial shape and was to take the lead in the joint executive team.
The company yesterday reported a 7 percent decline in profit for the nine months that ended in December last year, as its motorcycles business was strong, but its auto sales suffered in China and Japan, while demand stayed solid in the US.
Honda’s April-to-December profit totaled ￥805 billion (US$5 billion), down from ￥869.6 billion in the same period in 2023.
Nine-month sales gained nearly 9 percent to ￥16.3 trillion.
Meanwhile, Nissan yesterday said it expected an annual net loss of ￥80 billion for the fiscal year ending March 31 owing to slumping sales.
The company also lowered its annual operating income outlook to ￥120 billion from ￥150 billion, which was already a major downgrade from its starting guidance of ￥500 billion.
Additional reporting by Bloomberg
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