Japanese car manufacturer, Nissan has announced a huge financial loss for the third quarter of 2008, recording consolidated net losses after tax of 83.2 billion yen (equivalent to .81 billion US dollars). Net revenue is down 34.4 per cent compared with the same period of 2007 when net income came to 132.2 billion yen.

Nissan blame a ‘severe downturn in the global economy’ coupled the ‘negative impact of the strong yen’.

As a result, Nissan, famous for manufacture of green cars such as the Note and Micra; has announced a series of recovery actions. This includes the suspension of its GT2012 midterm business plan which would have seen the introduction of a pure electric vehicle in the U.S. and Japan by 2010 and then a mass-market of electric vehicle globally in 2012. However Nissan state that their ‘commitments on quality and zero-emission vehicles will be retained.’

Additionally, Nissan will reduce their global headcount by 20,000 from 235,000 employees to 215,000 through 2009, eliminate bonus payments to board of directors, and cut production through reduced working hours, non production days and shift elimination resulting in a 20 per cent cut in produced vehicles compared to the planned volume.

Commenting on the countermeasures and executive changes, President and CEO Ghosn said:

“The additional actions we are announcing today will reinforce our ability to manage through this global crisis, but they also position Nissan for rapid, strong growth when conditions improve. An organisation needs to be flexible enough to meet the changing needs of the business, and I am confident we have the talent, diversity and experience to lead Nissan effectively.”