Q2
Nissan saw its finance captives grow global sales penetration from
22 per cent last year to 29 per cent Q2 ’08, despite Nissan
Global’s net revenue falling four per cent to JPY2.3trn (£11.1bn).
Analysts put the drop down to fierce foreign exchange rates and
residual value risk.
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Its international motor finance arms, such as Nissan Motor
Acceptance Corp in the US and Nissan Finance Ltd in the UK, grouped
under the name Sales Financing in the results, had net sales of
JPY180bn (£854m) (Q2 2007: JPY190bn [£901m], down 5.3 per cent),
and operating income of JPY21bn (£100m) (Q2 2007: JPY21.3bn
[£101m], virtually flat year on year at -1.5 per cent), with gross
profit at JPY47bn (£223m), giving Nissan’s Sales Financing units a
combined profit margin of 11.7 per cent (as a proportion of net
sales).
However, market penetration has grown year-on-year. Fleet figures
were up from 13 per cent to 19 per cent, with retail showing a rise
from 34 per cent to 48 per cent for comparable quarters.
“Both in fleet and retail we have experienced significant
growth,” confirmed Gareth Jones, deputy MD of Nissan Finance Ltd.
“The much-hyped credit crunch has in fact revived the demand for
point-of-sale finance. Previously aggressive lenders have become
more cautious, or even withdrawn from the market. With Nissan
Finance, dealers can have the confidence to offer attractive
finance packages to their customers, with quick response times, to
help tie up the vehicle order.”
Globally, Nissan sold a total of 936,000 vehicles in the April to
June period, up seven per cent compared to the same period in 2007.
Growth continues to derive from the general overseas markets with
sales up by 23 per cent to 302,000 units.
Paul Collett
