Two major Japanese automakers announced their intentions to merge Monday, aiming to create the world’s third-largest automaker in an industry facing radical change with electric vehicles and emerging Chinese automakers.
Nissan and Honda announced a memorandum of understanding that will start discussions of a merger for the two automakers to create one joint company. Another Japanese automaker, Mitsubishi, which was already in an alliance with Honda, will also be a part of the discussions.
If the merger goes forward, the combined company would trail only Toyota and Volkswagen for the largest company by global sales. The proposed merger had been speculated about in the days leading up to Monday’s announcement.
“Today marks a pivotal moment as we begin discussions on business integration that has the potential to shape our future,” Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida said in a…
