Nissan mulls pulling out of S Korea, Financial Times reports

Nissan Motor Co is considering pulling out of South Korea, the Financial Times reported on Friday, as political and trade tensions between Japan and South Korea have caused sales of Japanese products in the neighbouring country to plummet.

I’m pretty sure things were plummeting for Nissan way before the current tensions happened. They were one of the corporations that were targeted for slave labor by the Koreans.

Japanese automakers are small players in the South Korean auto market, which is dominated by Hyundai Motor Co, and German imports including the Mercedes Benz and BMW brands.

Most brands are small players. Not just Japanese brands. American and other European brands also find it hard to sell there. The average person drives a Hyundai (Kia) or Samsung car. People with money see Mercedes and BMW as a status symbol and opt for those as the common high end cars.

Funny....the South Korean auto industry started by Hyundai getting help from Mitsubishi Motors back in the 1980s.

@Ossan

Actually it started by making Cortinas in cooperation with Ford and then developed its first car using by a team of British engineers.

Japanese automakers are small players in the South Korean auto market, which is dominated by Hyundai Motor Co, and German imports including the Mercedes Benz and BMW brands.

Korean automakers are non entity in the Japanese auto market.

Most brands are small players. Not just Japanese brands. American and other European brands also find it hard to sell there. The average person drives a Hyundai (Kia) or Samsung car. People with money see Mercedes and BMW as a status symbol and opt for those as the common high end cars.

I was in Busan last month, the number of American cars in Busan alone gar exceeds the number of American cars on Japanese roads.

Please don't take rash decisons based on the actions of the current totally inept South Korean government.

Things are bound to change soon you just have to weather the storm a bit for now.

Actually, as I recall from back in the days of yore when I took a class on International Trade and Industry, the genesis of the Korean automobile industry was Japanese.

It was either the Japanese company Datsun or Mitsubishi that pretty much doled out technology, engineers, capital, and all kinds of know-how to the Koreans who then formed Shinjin Autos.

Hello Kitty 321Today  04:30 pm JST

@Ossan

Actually it started by making Cortinas in cooperation with Ford and then developed its first car using by a team of British engineers.

They were assembling Ford Cortinas for Ford. It wasn't until the Hyundai Pony in 1975 that Hyundai made it's own car with a Mitsubishi engine and transmission.

"Dr. Lee reminded us what a big achievement the Genesis is for this automaker, which was established only four decades ago as a satellite assembly company for Ford‘s U.K. arm to assemble Ford Cortinas for the Korean market. Aside from those kit cars, Hyundai’s first car was the 1975 Pony (which, incidentally, was designed by Giugiaro), and through the 1980s Hyundai licensed designs from Mitsubishi to build cars. Hyundai did not build its own engine until 1991, when the Alpha four-cylinder was introduced. Dr. Lee was the proud father of that engine, which is still used in the Accent."

https://www.automobilemag.com/news/hyundai-engines/

Looks like the tendency of this "boycott" thing is Japanese companies leaving South Korea since there is nothing there that will bring profit for them and move to other countries like Vietnam, Malaysia, etc..

The question that I have is in case of this thing happen, who will take full responsibility for providing jobs for S. Koreans who work for those Japanese companies? How they will manage this problem? Life is hard in that country now with 9.2% unemployment rate, what can we say about the future of that country without those companies?

Lucky! They have another reason to blame for their downfall instead of admitting they are incompetent oyajis.

According to Korea Herald, the economic situation in Korea is bad. Young people are getting hard time to find jobs in Korea.

http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20190728000088

People says that both side will loose, but in this case I see that SK tend to loose more because it affect the jobs of those who works at Japanese companies.

This is the aim of the South Korean administration. Now the Korean automakers will be able to sell more cars. Trump uses Tariffs, Moon uses history.

No one prefers nissan anyway

A country that is destroyed if you own a Japanese car. scared.

And so it begins...

LandOfTheLostToday  06:05 pm JST

Well, this is a bad sign for Nissan investors. With the way things have been going, I wouldn't be surprised if Nissan went belly up.

If it did it won't have anything to do with pulling out of a market as insignificant as South Korea, which is not in the top ten of Renault, Nissan or Mitsubishi.

Well, this is a bad sign for Nissan investors. With the way things have been going, I wouldn't be surprised if Nissan went belly up.

I cannot help but gloat, and sit back and enjoy all of Nissans woes.

Why are Koreans such negative and backward thinking? We do not have time argueing the past days. The world is facing many new serious problems as computers are changing the world quickly.

If Japanese lenders starts pulling out their money from then it's going to be trouble for SK

http://www.businesskorea.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=33638

Business is business, as politics is politics.

Food for thought for all those who delude themselves that engineered cultural barriers aren’t an important part of the equation when it comes to the inability of superior quality imports to make greater inroads in Japan. Korea’s ballsy approach provides a useful template for other nations frustrated with Japan’s refusal to extend to its trade partners the same unfettered market access it enjoys in their’s.

Good riddance, to Nissan. They are completely welcome back to the lawsuits and scandals in Japan, and Saikawa's leadership.

Nissan never was a big player in South Korea anyways. They were in trouble long before these trade issues.

Nissan mulls pulling out of S Korea, Financial Times reports

"pulling out" eh? Sounds rather suggesting...

*suggestive

who will take full responsibility for providing jobs for S. Koreans who work for those Japanese companies? 

They'll soon go to do the vacant service and factory jobs in Japan.

Everyone knows Nissan is struggling internationally,

Car industry is struggling globally.

After looking at everything, Nissan should pull and allow Infiniti to carry the consumer brand in Korea. Let Nissan worry about commercial products like heavy trucks and elevators, thus allowing Nissan to gain money from service and logistics while being interwoven in Korean convenience.

Less competition means higher prices for SK citizens. Had that situation in America in late 1800's. Nissan is well loved here in America. Cool cars.

.

It would be a good move.

The SK economy is sputtering - and all the J-bashing has backfired - domestically . As well has disparaged them internationally throwing tantrums over a matter that was settled decades ago. (MOVE ON !! ).

Japan as a whole has more lucrative markets in other parts of Asia - in Africa, in So America.

Let the prickly bush go.

Japan helped jump start Korea's auto industry and they end up biting the hand that fed. In the 80s, I always thought it was a mistake for Japan to invest and help S Korea out. Especially since they've always, yes always, have had a negative bias against Japan.

My first car in Japan was a 1994 Nissan 300ZX, blimey what a fun car that was. Twin-turbo, manual gearbox, targa top, proper fun. And a money pit. Proper worth it though.

Japanese businesses are being boycotted, not appreciated for the employment and business they brought to S. Korea, the contribution to their economy is not valued.

Time to move on Nissan. Other companies will have to follow, S. Korea is no friend to Japanese companies or their investment. Court ruling can give the power to seize all assets depending on how they feel and what emotions brings out of them.

Hmmm. Very grateful country. After all the help to develop their industry, still want to whine over the past which already signed (2 times) to move on. Just to milk more money and boost popularity.