S&P downgrades Nissan on slowing sales and Carlos Ghosn
The company’s rating was lowered for the first time in a decade to A- from A, with Moody’s also placing the car maker on review for a downgrade
Tokyo — Nissan took another hit as the car maker’s debt rating was cut on concerns the next two years will be marked by slowing sales and a preoccupation with cleaning up after the scandal involving Carlos Ghosn. The company’s rating was lowered for the first time in a decade by S&P Global Ratings to A- from A. The outlook on the long-term debt score is stable, the rating firm said. The company’s A2 grade at Moody’s Investors Service also was placed on review for a downgrade. Nissan reduced its full-year earnings forecast after third-quarter profit missed analysts’ estimates, adding to the headwinds for a car maker struggling with the fallout from the arrest of former chair Ghosn. Sales in the US plunged 19% in January amid an industry-wide slump, intensifying the pressure on CEO Hiroto Saikawa as he tries to ease tensions with partner and shareholder Renault. Nissan is cutting as many as 700 workers at a Mississippi factory because of slowing truck and van sales. “Given severe busi...
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