Strong sales boost Nissan

JAPANESE car maker Nissan’s fiscal year profit has improved 27 percent to ¥663.5 billion (R78.82bn) as strong sales in the US, China and Europe offset damage from the strong yen. But Nissan is forecasting a 19 percent drop in profit for the fiscal year to March 2018 at ¥535bn as research investment and raw material expenses bite into bigger sales and cost-cut efforts. Sales for the fiscal year ended March 2017 dipped nearly 4 percent to ¥11.7 trillion. Nissan, which did not break down quarterly numbers, said yesterday that it sold 5.63 million vehicles globally for the fiscal year. It expects sales to grow to 5.83 million vehicles for the fiscal year to March 2018. Yokohama-based Nissan’s US sales rose 4 percent. Sales in China rose 8 percent, while sales in Europe excluding Russia rose 7 percent for Nissan. All the major car makers are working on autonomous driving and mobility connectivity technology, but Nissan, which makes the Leaf electric car and Infiniti luxury models, has been among the most aggressive. – AP