Nissan sees US as tough market for sales

Nissan sees US as tough market for sales

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Story Published: Jan 21, 2008 at 9:02 AM PDT

Story Updated: Jan 21, 2008 at 9:02 AM PDT

By Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) - A top Nissan executive said Monday that selling cars in the United States is going to be tough this year because of a likely U.S. economic slowdown amid problems in the credit and housing markets as well as a stronger yen.

Automakers and analysts are predicting that this year's U.S. auto sales could drop to their lowest level in a decade to about 16 million vehicles or lower.

Nissan Motor Co. Chief Operating Officer Toshiyuki Shiga said he was still hopeful that Nissan's new products will attract customers.

"Even though the market situation is not favorable, our product lineup is favorable," Shiga told reporters at the Foreign Correspondents' Club in Tokyo.

Nissan's recent offerings in the U.S., including the Altima sedan, were proving popular, and Japan's No. 3 automaker still had a chance to keep the "momentum" going in U.S. sales, he said.

But growth in other overseas markets, such as Brazil, Russia, India and China, was helping offset any decline in the U.S.

"It is quite difficult to take an optimistic attitude toward the U.S. market," Shiga said.

Nissan sold 1.07 million vehicles in North America last year, up 4.5 percent from the previous year.

Shiga said the recent slide in Nissan's share price was hard to accept. But he said he hoped that the company's earnings results and explaining its strategy will help win over investors.

Over the last year, Nissan's shares have fallen by about a third, and on Monday, they fell 3.1 percent to close at 985 yen ($9.20) in Tokyo. All Japanese automaker shares have slumped amid an overall decline in the Tokyo stock market.

Shiga also said he was pessimistic about the domestic auto market and further efforts were needed to cut costs in Japan, grow more sensitive to customer needs and make cars that can be sold both in Japan and in export markets.

The stronger yen, which erodes overseas income when repatriated to Japan, also is hurting exporters. The dollar has sunk to about 107 yen lately, while Japanese companies had been expecting the dollar to trade at about 110 yen or 115 yen.

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