The former head of Renault-Nissan Corporation, in a conversation with Bloomberg, once again criticized the deal between the auto giants. According to Carlos Ghosn, synergy between Honda and Nissan is difficult to find, since both brands are in the same markets and play in the same niches. The brands are very similar, so the merger does not look like a pragmatic step, it is a gesture of desperation under pressure from the Japanese Ministry of Trade and Industry.
Carlos Ghosn recalled his own experience of living in Japan: according to him, METI (Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) is a very influential organization lobbying for the deal. Honda was not interested in rescuing Nissan, but was forced to support the third largest automaker in the Land of the Rising Sun.
The head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Japan, Yoji Muto, does not hide that he welcomes the negotiations on the merger of Honda and Nissan. The minister emphasized that the merger will lead to an increase in the capitalization of corporations and an increase in competitiveness.
If the companies form an alliance, Honda-Nissan will become the third largest manufacturer in the world, after only Toyota and Volkswagen. However, Carlos Ghosn believes that conflicts cannot be avoided, since both companies have very strong engineering, but someone will have to accept the decisions of the partner.
Carlos Ghosn first spoke about the merger of Honda and Nissan in August, and even then the official said that it was about taking over a company in difficulty. Mitsubishi, whose business is also not doing well, could also be involved in the deal.