Nissan announces accelerated China push

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SHANGHAI - Japanese auto giant Nissan on Wednesday announced the launch of two models aimed at picking up speed in its key market of China, where it has been outpaced by local rivals.

At industry show Auto Shanghai, the group announced an investment of ¥10b ($1.4b) into China, and said it would increase the number of new models it planned to launch by summer 2027 to 10, up from eight.

The group's China chief, Stephen Ma, told a press conference the aim was to match Chinese competitors, and that Nissan had been slow in approaching the market with new models.

"We were not at the same speed, mainly because the Chinese brands were exceptional with speed," Ma said.

With fewer than 800,000 vehicles sold in the 2023 financial year, Nissan's sales fell by 24.1 per cent in China, the world's leading car market.

The company is struggling on several fronts, with fragile accounts and an aborted merger attempt with Honda exacerbated by the tariff turmoil affecting its biggest market, the United States.

The group's renewed China offensive was on display at its booth on Wednesday, in the hulking form of the Frontier Pro truck.

It is Nissan's first plug-in hybrid vehicle, and is designed to appeal to Chinese consumers' tastes.

The N7 electric sedan, meanwhile, produced with local partner Dongfeng, promises a range of up to 635 kilometres (395 miles), customisable lighting, and advanced driving assistance systems.

Nissan also plans to export the two models outside of China "in less than a year", Ma said, without specifying where -- other than not to the United States.