Nissan Motor cut its global sales forecast for the year to March 2027 to between 2.97 million and 3 million vehicles, from 3.15 million, after sales in China fell 15% in the first half, and reported a 96% drop in second-quarter operating profit.

The company kept its full-year operating profit target of 200 billion yen all the same, it said on Wednesday. That leaves 120 billion yen, or 60% of the year's target, to be earned between October and March, a period in which Nissan says new models in the U.S. and Japan will carry the load. For investors in Asia, the results split the company in two: a business that is recovering in its home market and in North America, and a China operation that is shrinking faster than management planned.

Second-quarter profit misses forecasts

Operating profit for July to September was 2.1 billion yen, down from 51.5 billion yen a year earlier, on revenue that rose 8.2% to 3,107.8 billion yen, Nissan said. Analysts had expected far more. The median forecast in an LSEG poll of eight analysts was 60.1 billion yen, Reuters reported.

Nissan put the decline mainly down to a year-earlier gain from lower U.S. emissions-related expenses that did not repeat. Reuters reported that the missing benefit took 36 billion yen off operating profit, and that higher raw material and parts costs, weak sales in China and an earthquake in southern Japan that halted production of several thousand cars also weighed on the quarter.

The first half as a whole looked better than the same period a year ago:

• Revenue rose to 6,072.0 billion yen from 5,578.7 billion yen.
• Operating profit was 80.0 billion yen, against a loss of 27.7 billion yen.
• The net loss narrowed to 39.7 billion yen from 221.9 billion yen.
• Global sales were 1.41 million vehicles, down 5% from a year earlier, according to Reuters.

The return to an operating profit did not reach the bottom line: the company's figures show a net loss in both periods, and an ordinary profit of 36.0 billion yen against a loss of 77.9 billion yen a year earlier. Nissan's results were based on an average exchange rate of 159 yen to the dollar.

Cost cuts did much of the work. The Re:Nissan recovery plan produced 110 billion yen in additional savings in the half, the company said. Nissan ended September with about 0.8 trillion yen in automotive net cash and 2.2 trillion yen in cash and cash equivalents, and it expects automotive net cash above 1 trillion yen at the end of the fiscal year.

China sales fall 15% as U.S. and Japan improve

The regional picture explains the forecast cut. Sales in China dropped 15% in the half, while U.S. sales, about a third of Nissan's global total, rose 6%, according to Reuters.

In China, Nissan said demand was weaker than it had expected, buyers were moving to what the industry there calls new-energy vehicles faster than anticipated and competition was intensifying. The company is cutting production of combustion-engine cars and dealer inventory in the country, expanding its N-series range of new-energy models and expanding exports.

Elsewhere the direction was up. Nissan raised its sales outlook for both the U.S. and Japan. U.S.-built models such as the Rogue, Frontier and Pathfinder supported sales there, with pricing and a richer mix of trim levels lifting revenue per vehicle, it said. In Japan, the new Elgrand minivan and Kicks are gaining customers.

Ivan Espinosa, chief executive officer, said in the statement that "China remains our most significant challenge, and we need to remain agile." Espinosa, who took the job in April 2025, has cut jobs, manufacturing capacity and models, Reuters noted.

What the second half has to deliver

The arithmetic for the rest of the year is demanding. The new sales range implies between 1.56 million and 1.59 million vehicles in the second half, up from 1.41 million in the first, based on the company's figures. Nissan said higher volumes, new model launches and a richer product mix would more than offset currency and raw material costs and the absence of a one-time tariff benefit booked in the first half.

The models it is counting on include the Rogue Hybrid in the U.S., the Elgrand and Kicks in Japan, the Frontier Pro plug-in hybrid in Mexico and the Pixo electric city car in Europe. Nissan said further unveilings, including the Skyline and Patrol in Japan and the Juke EV in Europe, would add to the lineup.

Capital Times has separately covered the first-half results of Honda and Subaru.

Nissan will present a new business plan in February 2027.