Japanese auto major Nissan, hit by the arrest of former chairman Carlos Ghosn, has revised downward its full-year forecast as nine-month net profit dropped more than 45 per cent. In its first earnings report since Ghosn was arrested on November 19 and then sacked as chairman, Nissan said the firm's bottom-line profit fell 45.2 per cent to 316.7 billion yen (USD2.9 billion).
Ghosn is in detention facing charges of financial misconduct. Nissan is allied in the business with France's Renault and fellow Japanese carmaker Mitsubishi Motors.
Ghosn had recently said that internal opposition to greater integration of the two car giants was behind his arrest in Japan. Speaking to AFP and a French daily from his Tokyo detention centre where he is fighting charges of financial misconduct, Ghosn said, "There was opposition and anxiety on the project of bringing the two companies together." Recently, a Tokyo court had denied bail to Ghosn, who was arrested on November 19 last year on allegations of financial misconduct.
In a public statement, Ghosn had set out a series of steps he hoped would convince the court he was not about to flee Japan. He vowed to hand over his three passports, wear an electronic tagging device and increased the amount of bail money offered. Ghosn also promised to hire security guards approved by prosecutors to monitor him and said he would not contact anyone connected with the case.
"As the court considers my bail application, I want to emphasise that I will reside in Japan and respect any and all bail conditions the court concludes are warranted," he said in a statement released by his US-based representatives.
