11:37 am, February 5, 2025
The proposed merger between Nissan and Honda to make it the world’s third largest carmaker appears to have stalled with reports claiming Honda proposed instead turning Nissan into a ‘fully owned subsidiary’.
The Japanese newspaper Nikkei reported this morning that Nissan was set to end $58bn merger talks as it could not reach an agreement on Honda’s proposed conditions.
According to the paper, it has heard from people close to the negotiations claiming differing agendas slowed the progress of talks.
The Financial Times also reports claims from three people ‘familiar with the matter’, with one saying that Honda had become ‘aggressive’ in its negotiations.
Its sources suggest that the new plans no longer bring the two companies under one jointly owned holding company, instead with Honda planning to take full control of Nissan.
However, both Honda and Nissan did refute the claims in statements from both carmakers and added that there was no official information to suggest talks were close to ending.
This follows Honda adding pressure to Nissan to buy Renault’s shares in the company ahead of the deal.
Renault then suggested to Nissan it should be seeking a higher price on its stake due to the plan of Honda taking control.
