Making cutbacks

Nissan has become the latest Japanese car maker to restructure its global business after it announced that it would cut 20,000 jobs worldwide amid weak sales.

Japan’s third-largest car manufacturer said that it expected a total loss of Y265bn (£2m) for the financial year to March 2009. The group also reported a net loss of Y83.2bn for the third quarter of 2008, after falling sales in the US and Japan affected global operations.

In response to the poor figures, the company plans to cut 8.5 per cent of its workforce by March. This accounts for 20,000 jobs globally and comes just a month after the group announced the loss of 1,200 staff at Europe’s most productive manufacturing facility in Sunderland.

In addition to job cuts, Nissan intends to reduce its output by 20 per cent this year.

Nissan’s directors will forego their bonuses in March and have their pay reduced by 10 per cent, while managers in Japan will see a 5 per cent cut to their salary.