Will iPhone Maker Come to Nissan’s Rescue?
Struggling Japanese automaker Nissan’s talks with Honda about a potential merger by 2026 are basically over now, according to various publications including financial newspaper Nikkei.
Sources familiar with the negotiations have said that Honda wanted to make Nissan a subsidiary rather than an equal partner, which the latter found unacceptable.
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What’s also unacceptable is the trouble Nissan finds itself in. Beyond the dramatic cost-saving measures that were announced in the fall of last year, including axing 9,000 jobs globally, a new partnership appears to be vital—notwithstanding the alliance with Renault, which still holds a 36-percent stake in Nissan. Reports suggest that Taiwanese electronics giant Hon Hai, better known as Foxconn and the maker of the iPhone and Nintendo gaming systems, is once again showing interest in a deal.
Foxconn was previously in discussions with Nissan, but the proposed merger with Honda forced it to back away in December, as Japanese media reported.
With Honda now out of the picture, Foxconn could be ready to swoop in. Rumour has it that the company’s chairman Young Liu has instructed a former Nissan executive to approach Renault about a potential collaboration.
Foxconn previously unveiled a pair of electric vehicle prototypes and had deals with Yulon Motor in Taiwan as well as Lordstown Motors and Fisker in the U.S. These last two are currently out of business, as you know, but Foxconn’s desire to become a contract manufacturer for EVs is still alive. It could certainly provide Nissan with much needed technological expertise and financial resources.
U.S. publication Bloomberg last week offered a somewhat conflicting report, mind you. Citing anonymous sources, it claimed that Nissan would prefer a tie-up with an American-based tech company since the U.S. is the automaker’s largest market.
What or who should we believe? We may not know for a while, although Nissan’s annual earnings report due around mid-April could tell us more about its long-term plans.