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Late last year, automakers Nissan and Honda
revealed that they were in negotiations over a
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possible merger made necessary by the fact that
after a horrible start to 2024,
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Nissan is in survival mode.
And while talks continue,
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more of Honda’s seemingly non-negotiables are
being revealed,
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including some that seem like such high bars
they.
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To questions over whether this could go through
at all.
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For one, recent reports say Honda wants Nissan
to essentially triple its profits by August of
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next year, along the tentative timeline for the
merger.
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This sounds tough on its own, worse if you
consider that Nissan’s operating profit
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plummeted 90% in the first half of its fiscal
year.
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Reports say the profit target would be
tantamount to about a $2.6 billion profit
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increase.
Oh, but Honda has more plans than just that.
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It’s also been revealed that Honda allegedly
has concerns about a large Nissan stakeholder,
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Renault, a French automaker that’s part of an
alliance with Nissan and holds a stake in it of
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35%.
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A Bloomberg report says Honda fears Nissan
could fall under undesirable foreign influence
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if a third party were to buy up the stake Rena
currently holds during negotiations.
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Therefore, the report says Honda wants Nissan
to buy Renault’s stake itself,
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which would mean shelling out more than $3.5
billion.
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For a company who saw its net income fall 94%
in the first half of its fiscal year,
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all of this feels like a tall order, perhaps an
insurmountable one.
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Multiple reports have suggested that the
Japanese government is pushing the merger
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behind the scenes.
Based on the interest expressed in Nissan by
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Foxconn, the idea is that Japan would do
anything to prevent one of its historic brands
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from becoming a Taiwanese company instead.
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But there’s a lot to achieve in order to make
it work,
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and former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn
recently stated that he just doesn’t see it,
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adding, quote, the synergies between the two
companies are difficult to find.
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I’m Anna Wells, and this is manufacturing now.