Mitsubishi Motors
Mitsubishi Motors of Japan plans to join an alliance with Honda Motor and Nissan Motor to create an automotive conglomerate with combined sales of more than 8 million vehicles.
Mitsubishi Motors, which is 34% owned by Nissan, will work with Honda and Nissan to finalize the details of their alliance, but the three companies plan to standardize in-vehicle software that operates cars.
Mitsubishi Motors declined to comment on the allegation, and representatives for Nissan and Honda were not immediately available for comment.
Nissan, Japan’s third-largest manufacturer, has been steadily losing market share in its two biggest countries, the United States and China, which accounted for half of its global sales in the fiscal year to March.
The company cut its full-year forecast after heavy discounting in the United States nearly wiped out its first-quarter profit.
The collaboration could help Japan’s automakers cut costs and strengthen themselves in the face of fierce competition in the electric vehicle market, which is dominated by Chinese companies such as BYD and Tesla.
Japanese companies were once dominant in China, the world’s biggest car market, but now face competition from domestic manufacturers that have rapidly ramped up production and won over consumers with low-cost, software-laden cars.
Nissan and Honda said in March they were discussing a strategic alliance to develop EV components as they seek to gain a bigger foothold in the global market for battery-powered cars, which is expected to grow in the coming years.
