Meow: Another Double Dose of Schadenfreude From Carlos Ghosn

Shortly after his high-flying escape from Japanese semi-captivity in late 2018, former Renault-Nissan Alliance boss Carlos Ghosn got catty, marveling at what became of those two automakers after they dropped him from the phone directory.

Despite the coronavirus pandemic sinking profits and sales across the globe, Ghosn is pretty sure he knows what’s really to blame for Nissan’s current misfortunes.

As you read last week, Nissan expects its global production to take a 30 percent haircut in 2020. In May, the company released a near-term plan to shrink its global footprint and model range in the interest of stabilizing the overstretched company’s balance sheet.

In February, Nissan recorded its first quarterly loss in more than a decade.

Going forward, the goal of still fresh-faced CEO Makoto Uchida is modest market share and operating margins, with a primary focus on North America, Japan, and China — quite a U-turn from the heady, expansionist Ghosn era.

Still claiming to be the victim of a corporate coup, Ghosn spoke out from his Lebanon refuge, telling France’s Le Parisien newspaper, “There is a market confidence problem in the alliance.”

“Personally, I find the results of Nissan and Renault pathetic. The two companies are looking inwards. There is no longer any real mix of management between Renault and Nissan, but a distrustful distance, “ he said during the interview, per Reuters.

Ghosn, who sought closer integration between the two companies (much to the chagrin of many of their executives) contrasted the share price performance of several big-name automakers with that of Nissan and Renault, which have seen their stock decline anywhere between 55 and 70 percent since his arrest.

On the legal front, Japan desperately wants Ghosn back in its grips, but Lebanon does not have an extradition treaty with that country. France would also like to have a word with him. Ghosn said he aims to clear his name while cooperating with authorities, but a meeting with French prosecutors didn’t go off as requested on July 13th.

“There is a technical obstacle. My passport is in the hands of the attorney general in Lebanon, because Japan has issued an international arrest warrant for me,” Ghosn said. “I also want to be sure that my security is assured and that I am guaranteed freedom of movement.”

[Image: Frederic Legrand/Shutterstock]