Nissan to Boost Light Commercial Vehicle Operations

Yokohama, Feb. 26 (Jiji Press)--Nissan Motor Co. <7201> said Monday it will strengthen its operations for light commercial vehicles, including vans and pickup trucks. The Japanese automaker will aim to boost its global sales of light commercial vehicles and frame-based sport-utility vehicles to 1.2 million units by fiscal 2022, up 40 pct from fiscal 2016. As part of the effort, Nissan will launch its Terra frame-based SUV in China this spring, planning to release the model in other Asian markets in stages. Nissan plans to actively use autonomous driving technology in pickups and frame SUVs. The company also plans to utilize technology from France's Renault SA and Japan's Mitsubishi Motors Corp. <7211>, Nissan's alliance partners, to improve the competitiveness of its products. Nissan's new midterm business plan, released last year, included plans to strengthen light commercial vehicle and frame SUV operations. Nissan will focus on boosting sales volume, not market shares, to achieve sustainable growth, Ashwani Gupta, chief of the Renault-Nissan alliance's light commercial vehicle operations, told reporters in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo. END