[NEWS] Honda x Nissan deal dead

    Nissan Says 'Thank You, Next' To Honda Merger
    ---------------------------------------------
    Nissan isn't giving up on love just yet. Despite the fact its
    merger deal with Honda to create the world's third-largest
    automaker seems to be in the shitter, the Japanese automaker
    is still looking for a potential partner. One of those
    possible partners has turned out to be Taiwan's Foxconn.

    Nissan's CEO, Makoto Uchida, met with Honda's CEO, Toshihiro
    Mibe, earlier this morning to say he wanted to end discussions
    with Honda after it proposed making Nissan a subsidiary.
    Apparently, Nissan isn't into Dom-Sub play. From Reuters:

        Nissan is now open to working with new partners,
        including technology companies, as it looks to
        navigate the technological upheaval brought by
        electric vehicles, software-driven cars and new,
        fast-moving Chinese manufacturers, the two people
        familiar with its thinking said.

        It was also open to working with Taiwan's Foxconn,
        the world's largest contract electronics maker,
        one of them said.

        Foxconn, which manufactures Apple's, opens new tab
        iPhones and has been seeking to expand its nascent
        EV contract manufacturing business, approached
        Nissan about a bid but was rejected by the carmaker,
        Reuters reported in December.

        Foxconn's EV business is led by a former Nissan
        senior executive, Jun Seki, who was once seen as a
        contender to become the automaker's CEO, before the
        job went to current boss Uchida.

    Back in December of 2024, Honda and Nissan signed a
    memorandum of understanding to discuss a merger of the two
    automakers under a holding company. Things, however, have
    since fallen apart because of growing differences between
    the two. The main issue is apparently that Honda (a strong
    automaker) said it wanted to make Nissan (a comparatively
    weak automaker) into a subsidiary. Nissan decided that
    talks couldn't continue under that proposal.

        Nissan will formalise the decision to withdraw from
        the MOU at a board meeting to be held before the
        company's third-quarter earnings announcement next
        week, the person added.

        Honda's current stance is that it would not accept
        an integration unless Nissan agrees to become a
        subsidiary, Japanese public broadcaster NHK
        reported.

        [...]

        A scrapping of the discussions raises questions about
        how Nissan, which is in the middle of a turnaround
        plan, can ride out its latest crisis without external
        help. Nissan has already announced plans to cut 9,000
        workers and 20% of global capacity.

    It's going to be very interesting to see where things go from
    here. I mean, it doesn't really seem like Honda needs Nissan,
    but in a lot of ways, this deal seems like a bit of a
    lifeline for Nissan. Some folks just don't like being told
    they're not as good as someone else.

    
<https://jalopnik.com/nissan-still-wants-a-partner-but-it-won-t-be-honda-1851756715>