Nissan Operating Losses Shrink as Restructuring Takes Hold
- Cost-cutting plan targeting fixed costs, overcapacity
- U.S., Japan and China markets help to mitigate losses
Nissan Motor Co. cut its operating loss outlook for the current fiscal year by about a third, fueling optimism that the automaker is regaining its footing after the coronavirus pandemic dented global sales.
The loss for the year to March will be 340 billion yen ($3.2 billion), compared with the prior forecast for a 470 billion yen operating loss, the Yokohama-based company said in a statement Thursday. For the July-September quarter, Nissan reported an operating loss of 4.8 billion yen, compared with analysts’ average estimate for a 148 billion yen loss.
The shrinking deficits are an early sign that Nissan’s efforts to cut more than 300 billion yen in fixed costs, reduce capacity and restructure the business are paying off. That’s fueling optimism that the automaker will join Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., which recently doubled their full-year profit forecasts, in recovering from outbreak-related disruptions. For Nissan, a recovery in U.S. and China helped to bolster performance, according to Takeshi Miyao, an analyst at Carnorama.