More and more companies have made the decision to leave Russia as a result of the conflict unleashed in Eastern Europe between the country of Vladimir Putin and Ukraine.
In that context, they include clothing stores (such as Zara and H&M), restaurants (such as McDonald’s), and giant industries such as global automakers (such as Renault).
In this last list, a company that joins the Russian game is Nissan.
That’s right, as announced on Tuesday, October 11, by the Ministry of Commerce, the assets in that country of the Japanese car manufacturer are going to become the property of the Russian State.
According to what they say from Moscow, the sale will include, on the one hand, all Nissan’s vehicle production and research facility in St. Petersburg.
In addition, the sales and marketing center that the Japanese company has in Moscow.
The departure from Russia was confirmed by the brand in a release.
According to the Russian State, Nissan has the possibility to buy back these assets within six years. Obviously, the Japanese brand remains hopeful that by that date, the war in Ukraine will be over and it can resume business in this country.
“On behalf of Nissan, I thank our Russian colleagues for their contribution to the business over many years. While we cannot continue to operate in the market, we have found the best possible solution to support our people,” said Nissan President and CEO Makoto Uchida.
A Nissan ally is in trouble for leaving Russia
The alliance of Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi is, together, the third largest vehicle manufacturer in the world, behind only Toyota and VW.
However, the departure of most Western brands from Russia will change that current scenario and that of the medium term: Renault’s sales plummeted 29.7 percent in the first half of 2022.
The most important reason: the exit from the Russian market.
In its latest fiscal report, the French company had posted dismal global results, driven especially by falling sales in Russia, a key market for the brand.
Renault reported that its global sales fell almost 30 percent compared to the same period in 2021, to just under a million cars.
The impact is not minor for Renault.
Russia was the brand’s second largest market before the start of the conflict.
According to information from JPMorgan, Russia accounted for Renault until 2021 15 percent of its profits.
In that country, Renault manufactured and sold hundreds of thousands of Dacia Dusters and Renault Clios, but closed sales in early March due to international pressure to leave Russia.
Like Nissan, in parallel, the brand launched a campaign to sell Renault Russia and the nearly 70 percent stake in Avtovaz.
The sale of Avtovaz shares will materialize in favor of Lada, the Russian company, and a scientific institute in that country, for the symbolic value of one ruble.
That is to say, the sale of those assets will not imply the income of funds for the company either.
Now read:
H&M reopens in Russia to carry out this sales strategy
Owner of ‘Russian McDonald’s’ buys more Western brands at bargain prices
Alarm in Europe: Russia cuts off all gas and the euro collapses like never before