Nissan’s Quarterly Operating Profit Falls 13%

Nissan Motor Co. reports its operating profit in the fiscal fourth quarter ended March 31 dropped 13% to 172 billion yen ($1.4 billion).

The company's quarterly net sales rose 3% to 3.3 trillion yen ($27.6 billion). Net income advanced 3% to 119 billion yen ($998 million). Unit sales for the period slipped 2% to 1.48 million vehicles as demand fell 19% in Japan and 10% in China.

For the full fiscal year, Nissan's revenue climbed 9% to 11.4 trillion yen ($95.4 billion). Operating income and net income each gained 18% to 590 billion yen ($5 billion) and 458 billion yen ($3.8 billion), respectively. The weak yen contributed nearly 69 billion yen ($576 million).

Vehicle sales in the 12-month period rose 3% to 5.32 million units. Strong gains in North America (+9% to a record 1.40 million) and Europe (+12% to 755,000) offset a 13% drop to 623,000 cars and trucks in Japan. Full-year volume in China grew less than 1% to 1.22 million units.

CEO Carlos Ghosn predicts the company's unit sales in the fiscal year that began April 1 will grow 4% to 5.55 million units. He anticipates operating profit will jump 14% and net income will advance 6%.