Nissan opposes Honda’s subsidiary offer in merger talks

Nissan Motor has told Honda Motor it is opposed to Honda’s offer to acquire all of Nissan shares and make it a wholly-owned subsidiary.

Nissan President Uchida Makoto met with Honda President Mibe Toshihiro on Thursday.

Uchida told Mibe many Nissan board members had expressed their opposition to Honda’s offer. But Honda has already told Nissan it will be difficult to continue merger talks unless Nissan agrees.

The Japanese automakers have been in talks since December about setting up a joint parent company. But Honda recently changed the terms and proposed making Nissan a subsidiary.

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Honda is believed to have made its new proposal because it is growing increasingly frustrated with Nissan management.

Honda has indicated it is not satisfied with Nissan’s plans to rebuild its business, which is a prerequisite for the merger talks. It believes Nissan management has been slow to make decisions.

Sources close to Honda say Nissan is not approaching the situation with the appropriate sense of urgency, and is not making serious efforts at reform.

Honda wants the subsidiary deal so it can make quick decisions on measures to overhaul Nissan’s business.

But Nissan officials have been unhappy with the way Honda has conducted negotiations. They say Honda has not shown Nissan the proper respect as a merger partner.

The two companies will soon make a final decision on whether to terminate the talks.