Nissan lifts profit guidance after better-than-expected Q3

[YOKOHAMA] Nissan Motor Co lifted its operating profit forecast by 6.5 per cent on Monday after better-than-anticipated results in the third quarter, citing brisk sales from new products, favourable exchange rates and cost cuts.

Japan's No 2 carmaker by sales said it now expects operating profit of 570 billion yen (US$4.79 billion) instead of the previous forecast of 535 billion yen for the year to end-March. A poll of 29 analysts by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S puts the profit of 589.9 billion yen.

For the October-December quarter, operating profit nearly doubled to 156.0 billion yen, far better than the 121.42 billion yen estimated by 12 analysts. Growth was helped by a low base of comparison from the year-earlier quarter, when earnings were pushed down by increased spending on marketing and other costs.

REUTERS