Nissan considers China expansion

Nissan Motor Co. said it may boost production capacity in China next fiscal year, depending on market conditions, as it looks to catch up with rising demand in the world’s biggest car market. “First, we are going to evaluate growth in China this year, and then we will have to take some decisions on capacity,” Nissan President and Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn said at company headquarters in Yokohama, Japan. The company is bullish about China’s growth potential in the mid- to long-term, he said. Nissan had already decided to boost its annual capacity in China to one million vehicles from 670,000 by the fiscal year ending March 2013. Growth in the fourth quarter which ended March 31, 2010, showed a 48% rise in sales in China. But that was slower than the 58% growth in the overall market because of Nissan’s limited capacity, Ghosn said. The company is targeting a 14% increase in sales in China to help meet its record global sales target of 3.8 million vehicles. (May 14, 2010)