Report: Nissan Hunting for Credit to Backstop the Whole Shebang

As assembly plants turned out the lights across North America in late March, automakers were quick to call upon new credit lines to ensure fiscal stability in the coming months. No one’s really sure by just how much the coronavirus pandemic will hamper sales and profits.

While Nissan, cash-strapped as it is (and facing a new crisis after tackling too many in recent times), has already furloughed its U.S. workforce, that doesn’t seem to be enough to satisfy company bean counters. The automaker is reportedly on the hunt for available cash.

Knowledgeable sources tell Reuters that Nissan is seeking $4.6 billion in credit from major lenders, fearing that the virus’ impact on sales and production will be long lasting.

As we’ve stated before, the pandemic’s arrival both here and overseas couldn’t have come at a worse time for Nissan. The company, already on the ropes from a global sales slide and an increasingly unbalanced earnings sheet, is hardly a paragon of fiscal sustainability. An updated turnaround plan pushed by the company’s new CEO, Makoto Uchida, barely had time to leave the gate before the coronavirus nipped the enhanced streamlining efforts in the bud. The plan itself isn’t expected to be revealed until next month.

According to Reuters‘ sources, the amount of available cash Nissan’s looking to add to its rainy day reserves has not been finalized. A spokesperson told the outlet that Nissan is able to sustain its current operations on its own; however, they added that “the automaker was looking at various options to prepare for a possible crisis.”

[Image: Nissan]