Nissan reports first full-year net profit in three years

Nissan said Thursday its full-year net profit to March 2022 returned to the black for the first time in three fiscal years, citing cost-saving efforts and positive US market conditions.

The Japanese auto giant reported an annual net profit of 215.5 billion yen ($1.67 billion), beating the company’s forecast of 205 billion yen and representing the first net profit since fiscal year 2018-19.

But looking ahead, it warned of a market environment “more severe than in fiscal year 2021, due to semiconductor supply shortages, higher raw material prices and logistics costs, the crisis in Ukraine as well as the impact of lockdowns on parts supplies in China.”

It projects a net profit for the current fiscal year of 150 billion yen, following the conservative lead of other automakers facing headwinds caused by supply disruption.

“It is clear that our industry and therefore our performance was impacted by intensifying headwinds in the last fiscal year,” said chief operating officer Ashwani Gupta.

“These challenges, magnified in the fourth quarter with rising energy prices, continued supply chain shortages and ongoing Covid disruptions,” he said.

“While Nissan has put in place agile business continuity plans, these continuous changes in the market are creating unprecedented uncertainty.”

The Japanese auto giant has faced a series of trials in recent years, from weak demand to the fallout from the arrest of former boss Carlos Ghosn, now an international fugitive in Lebanon.

But the crisis-hit company has clawed its way back, helped in part by a recovery in demand for cars, and the effects of a weaker yen, which has hit 20-year lows against the dollar in recent months.

© 2022 AFP