Joji Tagawa, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. corporate vice president, said the Japanese automaker saw sales rise in North America and Europe during the last quarter.
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. rode sales gains in North American and Europe to a 17.6% increase in revenue and a 36.3% increase in net income during the first three months of its new fiscal year, which ended June 30.
The Japanese automaker reported net revenue of $23.9 billion (2.90 trillion yen) versus 2.47 trillion yen a year ago. Operating profit was $1.6 billion (193.7 billion yen), up from 122.6 billion yen, a 58% increase. Net income was $1.3 billion (152.8 billion yen) versus 112.1 billion yen in the prior year.
“Nissan delivered solid financial results in the first three months of the fiscal year due primarily to strong demand for our core products in North America and Europe,” said Carlos Ghosn, president and chief executive officer. “Given our on-going product offensive, the benefits of our Alliance strategy and continued cost-discipline, Nissan is on track to deliver its full-year financial guidance.”
Nissan unit sales increased 4.4% in a market that increased 1.5% while marketshare rose to 5.9%, up from 5.7% the previous year. The company sold 1,294,000 vehicles during the period. The increase in sales was accompanied by new model introductions and plenty of accolades fro existing products.
The Nissan Murano recently earned the IIHS' Top Safety Pick Plus rating for the automaker.
During the April-to-June quarter that opened the fiscal year, Nissan launched the all-new Maxima in the U.S. and expanded introduction of the NP300 Frontier to Latin America and the Caribbean. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety awarded the Murano crossover a “Top Safety Pick Plus” vehicle safety rating, and the Sentra was named Top Compact Car in the J.D. Power and Associates Initial Quality Study (IQS).
(Nissan joins forces with Daimler to build small cars in Mexico. For more, Click Here.)
Infiniti improved to the fifth position in the J.D. Power IQS, securing recognition as the largest rank improvement of any brand. All Infiniti models performed above average in their respective segments, and the QX70 and QX80 were awarded top honors in their segments.
Nissan continued to benefit from strong sales of models from the Common Module Family, which was developed within the Renault-Nissan Alliance: the Qashqai, Rogue and X-Trail. Nissan ended the period as best-selling Asian brand in Europe.
(Click Here for the first “official” look at Infiniti’s new QX30 “Active Compact.”)
In the first quarter Nissan maintained its zero-emissions leadership. Total sales since launch of the all-electric Leaf have passed 180,000 units, and the company continued to expand its presence in electric commercial vehicles with the e-NV200.
On a management pro forma basis, which includes the proportional consolidation of results from Nissan’s joint venture operation in China, fiscal year first quarter net revenue increased to 3.12 trillion yen, up 16.0% year-on-year. Operating profit was up 41% versus the same period last year, to 219.7 billion yen, resulting in a 7% operating profit margin.
(To see more about Nissan’s consideration of a NISMO Maxima, Click Here.)
Nissan reaffirmed its global sales forecast for fiscal 2015. With a number of new models in the pipeline, including the Titan pick-up truck in the U.S. and the Lannia sedan in China, the company expects to sell 5.55 million units this fiscal year, up 4.4% and equivalent to global market share of 6.5%.