Nissan production, sales and export results for November 2003

Tokyo - Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. today released production, sales and export figures for November.

Production

Nissan's global production in November rose 6.5% over the same month a year earlier to total 250,607 units.

Domestic production for the month came to 117,398 units, down 6.7% from November of last year. One reason for that decrease was a decline in sales volumes of models marketed in Japan, including compact cars like the March (launched in March 2002) and the Cube (launched in October 2002), as well as the Fairlady Z (launched in August 2002). Another contributing factor was the transfer of Maxima production in February of this year from Japan to local production in North America where the model is marketed. On the other hand, higher production volumes were seen for various export models, notably the Sunny sold in China and other Asian markets and the Infiniti FX45/FX35 premium crossover SUVs marketed in North America.

Overseas production in November advanced 23.2% over last year's level to reach 133,209 units. In the U.S., output totaled 49,981 units, posting a hefty year-on-year gain of 52.2%. That increase was driven largely by full-scale production of the new Quest minivan and the all-new Pathfinder Armada SUV and Titan full-size pickup truck, as well as by strong sales of the new Maxima. In Mexico, production came to 25,175 units, down 9.1% from a year earlier due mainly to a drop in Sentra sales and exports to the U.S.

Production in the U.K. in November showed substantial year-on-year growth of 39.7%, rising to 27,943 units on the back of robust sales of the new Micra (March in Japan). Production in Spain was also up 5.1% over last year to total 10,319 units, owing largely to the demand for the Primastar commercial vehicle.

Sales

Domestic registrations in November slipped 9.8% from a year earlier to stand at 55,196 units. That decline was chiefly due to the lower sales volumes seen for the March, Cube, Fairlady Z and other models that were launched in 2002. In contrast, newly released models such as the Teana and the Cube Cubic continued their strong sales showing. Nissan's share of the domestic registered vehicle market in November was 17.8%, a 0.7-point dip from the same month a year ago.

Domestic sales, including minicars, came to 60,862 units in November, down 6.4% from last year's level. Including the minicar segment, Nissan's domestic market share in November stood at 13.3%, a slight decline of 0.2 point compared with November 2002.

November sales in the U.S. posted a year-on-year gain of 11.2%, rising to 63,930 units. Despite continued robust demand for the Infiniti FX45/FX35, sales of the Infiniti Division edged down 1.1% to 8,730 units, owing mainly to reduced sales of the Infiniti G35 (Skyline in Japan). The Nissan Division boosted its sales 13.4% over November 2002 to 55,200 units, thanks to the higher sales volumes recorded by new models such as the Murano crossover SUV, Quest and Pathfinder Armada. November sales in Canada were up 1.2% over last year to total 5,127 units, and sales in Mexico also increased 1% to 18,018 units.

In Europe, sales came to 42,647 units in November, a large advance of 25% compared with the same month last year. That growth was mainly fueled by strong sales of the new Micra, the X-TRAIL exported from Japan and the 350 Z (Fairlady Z in Japan), which went on sale in Europe this September.

In other regions, November sales in China grew 30.5% over last year to total 8,339 units, propelled by brisk sales of the Sunny.

Exports from Japan

Nissan's exports in November totaled 63,606 units, down 9% from a year earlier.

Shipments to North America declined 33.6% to 24,636 units, primarily due to the effect of switching production of the Maxima from Japan to North America. However, strong shipments were seen for the Murano, Infiniti FX45/FX35 and Infiniti G35, among other models.

Exports to Europe fell below last year's level, decreasing 3.5% to 8,648 units on account of a slight decline in X-TRAIL shipments.

Shipments to other regions showed substantial gains over November 2002, as exports to Latin America advanced 14.4% to 4,430 units, exports to Oceania climbed 52.6% to 5,816 units and exports to Asia soared 111% to 11,194 units.

Exports to China also recorded dramatic year-on-year growth of 433.3% to total 4,309 units, driven by robust sales of the new Sunny.

Global Production by Country

*1 Others include production in Taiwan, Thailand, Philippines, South Africa, Indonesia and China excluding CKD production.  

Global Unit Sales by Main Market (Region)

*2 Japan sales are categorized into passenger cars and commercial vehicles based on chassis.     
*3 U.S. sales are based on retail including Hawaii.     
     DSR (daily selling rate)-adjusted year-on-year change in Nov. is +15.6%.     
     Nissan Division:  55,200 units     
     Infiniti Division:      8,730 units     
*4 Canada and Mexico sales are based on retail.     
*5 North America sales are based on retail including Guam, Saipan and other islands.     
*6 Europe sales are based on retail in the whole Europe including Turkey and Israel from the May 2002 results.     

Vehicle Exports from Japan

###