Commentary: Carlos Ghosn is the least of Nissan’s woes
Commentary Commentary Nissan's business challenges are no laughing matter, says the Financial..
Commentary
Commentary
Nissan's business challenges are no laughing matter, says the Financial Times' Leo Lewis.
FILE PHOTO: Carlos Ghosn, Chairman and CEO of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, attends the Tomorrow In Motion event on the eve of press day at the Paris Auto Show in Paris, France, October 1, 2018. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau
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TOKYO: Rumours that former Nissan Motor chairman Carlos Ghosn escaped Tokyo for Lebanon in a musical instrument case might make a good movie twist.
It does nothing to alter the plotline for Nissan. For the Japanese automaker, it is far from the end for its reputational and financial issues.
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Mr Ghosns absence matters less than what he left behind, a collection of ineffective corporate alliances.
More madcap comedy than epic thriller, Mr Ghosn gave the Japanese prosecutors and police the slip at the year end.
READ: 'I did it alone,' Ghosn says of Japan escape
READ: Ghosn seen on security camera leaving Tokyo home alone: Media
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Some will also smirk at local regulators who fined Nissan a mere US$22 million for allegedly knowingly understating Mr Ghosns pay.
NISSANS POOR PROSPECTS
But its operational issues are no laughing matter.
Nissan has cut its operating profit forecast for the year ending March by more than a half and revised down sales forecasts in the US, its biggest market, by more than a tenth.
In this file photo taken on Sep 15, 2017 then Renault-Nissan Chairman and CEO Carlos Ghosn gestures as he addresses a press conference in Paris. (Photo: AFP/Eric Piermont)
Already profitability is at a decade low. Third-quarter operating margins fell to 1.1 per cent. Only its auto leasing unit has offset the losses made from cars this year.
Margins at home, which have historically been the highest, dropped more than 7 percentage points in the most recent quarter.
Analysts do not expect Nissan to have positive free cash flow much before March 2022. All this will stretch the companys balance sheet.
Within a consolidating auto industry, Nissan and alliance partner Renault of France chastely huddle together, keeping one foot on the floor.
Renaults newish chairman Jean-Dominique Senard, wants no more dramas with Nissan. He will not press for a merger.
A MESSY THREE-WAY PARTNERSHIP
Markets have booedRead More – Source
