Nissan Halts Production at Changzhou Plant as China Woes Persist
By Daniel Leussink and Kantaro Komiya
TOKYO – Nissan Motor has halted production at its Changzhou plant in China to optimize its operations, the Japanese automaker announced on Friday. The Changzhou plant, run together with Nissan's local partner Dongfeng Motor, was making the Qashqai SUV with an annual capacity of about 130,000 vehicles a year, a Nissan spokesperson said.
Nissan's total production capacity in the world's biggest auto market is 1.6 million vehicles, with the Changzhou plant accounting for 8% of that, the spokesperson added, stressing that the company remains committed to China. The Japanese carmaker operates eight factories in China through its joint venture with Dongfeng, but like other Japanese manufacturers, it has lost market share to swift local rivals who attract drivers with software-loaded electric vehicles at prices similar to traditional internal combustion engines.
A smaller rival, Mitsubishi Motors, decided last year to end production at its Chinese joint venture. Mitsubishi is also Nissan's partner in a long-standing alliance with the French carmaker Renault.
