Chip shortage hits Nissan's route back to profit

The global health crisis plus a shortage of semiconductors led to a record annual loss at Nissan.

On Tuesday (May 11) it said the hit to vehicle sales and the global chip situation forced it to cut production.

Nissan, Japan's No. 3 carmaker by sales, said its annual operating loss widened in the year ending March 31st to $1.38 billion.

That's almost four times the previous year's shortfall.

It marked the worst performance in 12 years for the firm, which has not made a profit since 2019.

There was some brighter news though.

Nissan beat its February forecast thanks to a sales recovery in China and cost cutting.

The global auto industry has been grappling with a chip shortage since the end of last year.

Last quarter Nissan had to cut production of its best-selling Note compact car in Japan.

It also made short-term output adjustments to its North American operations last quarter due to the chip shortage.

Nissan has been pulling back from the global expansion pursued by ousted chairman Carlos Ghosn.

Its shares closed down just over half a percent on Tuesday.