Honda and Nissan have reportedly engaged in talks about a potential merger to better compete with electric vehicle manufacturers, particularly in China.
The move would allow both companies to pool resources and strengthen their presence in the rapidly growing EV market.
In March, Honda and Nissan decided to explore a strategic partnership aimed at EVs, according to BBC.
“As announced in March of this year, Honda and Nissan are exploring various possibilities for future collaboration, leveraging each other’s strengths,” both firms noted in a joint statement.
This comes on the backdrop of many car brands facing rising competition as the industry shifts from petrol and diesel vehicles to electric ones, with production in China reportedly growing.
The second and third-largest car manufacturers in Japan, just behind Toyota, have been losing market share in China, which accounted for nearly 70% of global EV sales in November.
Despite Honda and Nissan’s global sales of 7.4 million vehicles in 2023, they are struggling to compete with lower-cost EV makers like BYD, whose quarterly revenues surpassed Tesla’s for the first time in October.
Honda and Nissan have not denied the story, which was first reported by Japanese business newspaper The Nikkei, but said it was “not something that has been announced by either company”.
“If there are any updates, we will inform our stakeholders at the appropriate time.”
In March, the two companies agreed to collaborate on their EV businesses, and in August, they expanded their partnership to include joint work on batteries and other technologies.
Additionally, in August, they announced a deal with Mitsubishi to explore intelligence and electrification.
