Honda and Nissan Explore Deeper Ties

(Reuters) – Japanese carmakers Honda (NYSE:HMC) and Nissan (OTC:NSANY) are in talks to deepen ties, including a possible merger, as challenges from Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) and Chinese rivals urge a restructuring of Japan's auto industry.

The two companies combined would become the world's third-largest auto group by vehicle sales after Toyota (NYSE:TM) and Volkswagen (ETR:VOWG_p).

Sales

• Honda sold 3.98 million vehicles globally last year.
• Nissan sold 3.37 million vehicles on a preliminary basis.
• Their combined 2023 sales totaled 7.35 million vehicles, surpassing the 7.31 million reported by South Korea's Hyundai (OTC:HYMTF) and Kia, currently the world's third-largest auto group.

Production

• Honda produced 4.19 million vehicles globally last year.
• Nissan manufactured 3.44 million vehicles.

Employees

• Honda had 194,993 employees as a consolidated group.
• Nissan employed 133,580 as of the end of March, according to securities filings.

Market Capitalization

• Honda's market capitalization is about $44 billion.
• Nissan's is about $10 billion after a share price surge on Wednesday.
• A full merger would be larger than the $52 billion deal between Fiat (BIT:STLAM) Chrysler and PSA in 2021 creating Stellantis (NYSE:STLA).

Major Markets

• Honda's most important market is the United States, accounting for a third of its 2023 vehicle sales. Combined with Canada and Mexico, North America represented 37% of sales, while China's share was 31% and Japan's was 15%. Europe accounted for only 2%.
• Nissan's biggest market is also North America, accounting for 37% of its vehicles, with the U.S. representing 27%, China at 23%, Japan at 14%, and Europe at 10%.

Electrification Targets

• Honda aims to boost electric vehicle output to more than 2 million units per year by 2030, targeting 40% of new car sales to be EVs and fuel cell vehicles. By 2040, it plans to sell only EVs and FCVs. Honda also aims to sell 1.3 million hybrid vehicles annually by 2030.
• Nissan, a pioneer in the EV market with its Leaf introduced in 2010, aims for EVs and hybrids to make up 60% of its global sales by 2030.

($1 = 153.4400 yen)