Nissan reports record full-year profit

Japanese car giant Nissan on Monday reported a record fullyear net profit thanks to US tax cuts but warned about the outlook for the next 12 months owing to a strong yen.

Nissan’s net profit for the fiscal year to March rose 12.6 percent to 746.9 billion yen ($6.8 billion), as sales edged up 2.0 percent to 11.95 trillion yen.

Operating profit was squeezed by swelling costs, including growing incentives in the US market, and the negative impact of a damaging inspection scandal.

But US tax cuts offset the negative factors, resulting in a “sizeable” profit gain, said executive officer Hiroto Saikawa.

Nissan, however, said its net profit for the current fiscal year to March 2019 is forecast to drop 33.1 percent to 500 billion yen because of foreign exchange losses and growing costs of raw materials.

“The Japanese auto industry benefited from US tax cuts for the fiscal year,” said Satoru Takada, an analyst at TIW, a Tokyo-based research and consulting firm.

“Foreign exchange gains have contributed to their earnings but the impact is decreasing as the yen has gotten stronger recently,” Takada told AFP. (AFP)