Nissan Motor is set to lay off more than 10,000 employees worldwide, according to Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, bringing total planned job cuts to around 20,000—or approximately 15% of its global workforce.
The move comes as Japan’s third-largest automaker struggles with declining sales in key markets, particularly China and the United States, and seeks to streamline operations under new leadership.
The company, which had over 133,000 employees as of March 2023, had previously announced in November plans to eliminate 9,000 jobs and reduce global production capacity by 20%. It has since confirmed the closure of a plant in Thailand by June and intends to shut two additional facilities, yet to be named.
Nissan will report its financial results for the year ending March on Tuesday. It had warned last month of a record net loss of between 700 billion and 750 billion yen ($4.74 billion–$5.08 billion), mainly due to impairment charges. The automaker has also revised its profit outlook downward four times during the financial year.
The company has faced challenges capitalising on the surge in demand for hybrid vehicles in the U.S. and has lost momentum in the electric vehicle segment, despite being an early leader. In China, the world’s largest car market, it plans to introduce about 10 new models over the coming years in an attempt to revive flagging sales.
New CEO Ivan Espinosa, who succeeded Makoto Uchida last month, is leading efforts to overhaul the business. He has signalled that further restructuring measures are under consideration.
In a further blow, Nissan announced on Friday it would abandon plans to build a $1.1 billion EV battery plant in Kyushu, despite previously qualifying for government subsidies to support the project.
