May 29, 2020 (NHK) - Nissan Motor has posted its first net loss in 11 years in the business year through March, amounting to more than 670 billion yen, or 6.2 billion dollars.
The loss is the worst since fiscal 1999, when former chairman Carlos Ghosn, sent from Renault of France, led the Japanese automaker's rebuilding efforts.
Nissan attributes the poor performance to sluggish sales in the US, and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on global production and sales.
The company says consolidated sales in fiscal 2019 fell 14 percent from the previous year to 9.88 trillion yen, or 91.7 billion dollars. The firm logged an operating loss of 40.5 billion yen, or 375 million dollars.
Nissan also booked special losses of 603 billion yen, or 5.6 billion dollars, mainly as restructuring costs. That pushed up its net loss to 671.2 billion yen, or 6.22 billion dollars.
The automaker also unveiled its four-year transformation plan through the end of fiscal 2023.
The firm plans to focus on the markets of Japan, China and North America, and cut its production capacity by 20 percent to 5.4 million units a year.
It also plans to close a manufacturing facility in Indonesia and negotiate the closure of a plant in Spain.
As a measure to return to profit, the carmaker says it will introduce 12 models in the next 18 months.
Nissan President and CEO Uchida Makoto said at an online news conference on Thursday that the transformation plan aims to ensure steady growth instead of excessive sales expansion.
