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Nissan raises $US7.8 billion to offset company turmoil – report

Japanese car giant raises billions of dollars to help it through the coronavirus crisis.


Nissan has reportedly raised $US7.8 billion ($AU11.2 billion) in financing from its creditors, according to news agency Reuters.

The Japanese car company secured the financing to help it endure difficulties caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Nissan was already experiencing hardship prior to the global pandemic occurring, however the situation appears to have amplified the automaker's troubles.

Shares of Nissan have fallen steadily over the past year, more than halving in value, as the company recorded its first annual loss in eleven years.

Production at Japanese car factories have fallen in May by 62 per cent year-on-year, following a sharp 55 per cent decline in April.

Protests erupted in May as Nissan announced it would be going forward with plans to shut-down a factory in Barcelona, Spain, due to shrinking demand. Hundreds of workers blocked streets and burned tyres during the protests.

Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida told shareholders in an address in late June he would sacrifice half of his pay and step-down from his position if he did not deliver on his promise of turning the company's fortunes around.

Ghosn but not forgotten

Meanwhile, seven defendants fronted court in Turkey last week, accused of smuggling former Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn to Beirut via Istanbul.

Ghosn fled Japan while on bail, hiding in an instrument case on a private jet. He had been accused of violating local financial law by failing to disclose part of his income.

One of the accused smugglers, a Turkish jet executive, denied willing involvement and reportedly told the court that Ghosn had bragged about Hollywood making a movie of his daring escape.

Japanese authorities have formally requested that two additional smugglers, a former US Army Special Forces commando and his son, be extradited from the US for their role in the plot.

In June 2020, emails dating back as far as 2018 appeared to support Ghosn's claim that his arrest was part of a conspiracy to stop his plan of merging Nissan and Renault – a claim that Nissan has strongly denied.


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Ben Zachariah

Ben Zachariah is an experienced writer and motoring journalist from Melbourne, having worked in the automotive industry for more than two decades. Ben began writing professionally more than 15 years ago and was previously an interstate truck driver. He completed his MBA in Finance in early 2021 and is considered an expert on classic car investment.

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