Nissan's top management changes to seek management breakthrough

Nissan Motor Co announced a change at the top of the company, effective April 1, current president Makoto Uchida will step down and be replaced by the current chief planning officer Ivan Espinosa.

Bloomberg reported that Nissan's net profit in the first half of the fiscal year 2024 (April to September) fell by 94% compared with the same period last year, due to multiple factors such as rising sales costs in the US market. Nissan also announced at the time that it would cut 20 per cent of its global production capacity and lay off 9,000 workers.

In order to overcome the crisis, Nissan and Honda announced in December last year to open merger talks, but because of the obvious differences in the merger negotiations, the two car companies formally decided to cancel the merger plan in February this year.

Mr. Espinosa, 46 years old, joined Nissan in 2003. In his new role, he will be tasked with solving the company's financial and business challenges, as well as driving technological innovation. He said: "I believe the potential of Nissan is far greater than the current situation. I look forward to building on the efforts of my predecessor to bring stability and growth back to the company."

Nissan also announced a series of executive changes to show its determination to become younger and innovation-driven.