Nissan annual profit soars to US$4.2b on weak yen, new models

[TOKYO] Nissan on Wednesday said its fiscal-year net profit soared 17.6 per cent to US$4.2 billion, crediting a weak yen and new model rollouts for buoyant results that drove past its own earlier forecasts.

Japan's number-two automaker reported a 457.6 billion yen profit in the year to March - it had been expecting earnings of 420 billion yen - on sales of 11.38 trillion yen, up 8.5 per cent.

The company projected an even stronger 485.0 billion yen profit this business year.

Also on Wednesday, however, Nissan and Toyota separately announced a huge recall tied to an exploding air bag crisis, with Nissan calling back 1.56 million vehicles while its rival recalled five million vehicles globally.

AFP