Former Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn offered a deep analysis of the potential merger between Nissan and Honda, deeming it a 'desperate' move. While the two companies are reportedly in talks, Nissan openly acknowledges that it is facing an 'emergency situation.' In Ghosn's view, Nissan's circumstances are dire, and the outlook is bleak.
Nissan is currently in a precarious state, with no signs of improvement. Earlier, the CEO of Nissan stated that the Japanese automaker is in an 'emergency situation,' indicating a significant crisis. In response, Nissan plans to cut 9,000 jobs, delay upcoming models, and is desperately seeking new financial support to stabilize its operations. As if that weren't enough, the company appears to be exploring a merger with Honda.
Ghosn has now spoken out about this situation. According to him, this scenario indicates a major problem for Nissan, and it is clear that Honda is not overly enthusiastic about the intervention. He stated, 'It's a desperate move. It's not a practical deal because, frankly, it's hard to achieve cooperation between the two companies. There is practically no integrative relationship between the two as they compete in the same markets and share similar products.'
He continued, 'So in a way, the merger is a desperate attempt to find a way forward. On the other hand, Honda, which if I understand correctly, has not been very excited about this step but, you know, you have to rely on the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry in Japan.' Ghosn believes that the ministry is pressuring Honda to finalize this deal because it would ultimately keep one of Japan's largest brands alive.
He said, 'Having lived in Japan for many years, I understand the influence of the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry.' Ghosn elaborated, 'In my opinion, there is no industrial logic to this, but there comes a moment when you have to choose between performance and control. Clearly, if you can have both, that would be ideal. But there are moments when you have to choose, and without a doubt, with the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry and all I know about it, they prefer control over performance. So they pushed Honda toward the deal, for sure.'
He noted that if these two brands merge, they will be on the path to significant technological integration. 'You have to understand that Honda is an organization with strong engineering capabilities, and Nissan is very proud of its own engineering technologies. The battle here lies in determining which technologies the new company will adopt—whether it’s through a merger or a new alliance. I can assure you that it will be extremely challenging.'
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Senior Writer The quest for automotive knowledge began as soon as the earliest memories. Various sources information, even questionable ones, have been explored including video games, television, magazines, or even internet forums. Still stuck in that rabbit hole.
