Nissan Motor increases China sales projections

Shanghai, November 4 (Gasgoo.com) Nissan Motor has increased sales projections in China as government subsidies boosted vehicle demand, Bloomberg reported today. The Japanese carmaker expects to sell 712,000 vehicles in China this fiscal year ending March 31, 2010, up from an earlier forecast of 570,000.

"China is becoming vital for Nissan," said Koji Endo, Managing Director at Advanced Research Japan Co., a Tokyo-based equity research firm. "Government stimulus programs have also worked better than Nissan expected." China's vehicle sales may rise 28% to 12 million this year, making the country surpass the U.S. as the world's largest auto market.

From January to September, Nissan sold a record 400,632 passenger cars in China, up 47.2% and exceeding the total sales of 2008, with Sept. sales up 63.8% to 75,209, helped by its Teana and Sylphy sedans. China sales of all Nissan vehicles hit 541,428 units in the first nine months, up 35.2%.

China's auto sector will continue booming even after government stimulus measures expire by the end of this year, Nissan Motor CEO Carlos Ghosn told reporters last week, adding that his company will struggle to meet demand. "The potential of the Chinese market is huge," he said.

Nissan plans to boost the output of its factory in southern Guangdong province by 250,000 units to 600,000 by 2011, taking its total production capacity in China to 700,000 units.