The $60 billion mega-merger between Honda and Nissan has been called off, in part because of Nissan’s “pride and insufficient alarm about its predicament,” writes Reuters, citing half a dozen sources.
The report hints at bad blood on both sides, saying the development also ties to Honda abruptly revising the terms of the merger and proposing that Nissan become a subsidiary. Taiwanese electronics giant Foxconn, which has recently forayed into EVs, has said it may be interested in buying a stake in Nissan now that the merger is off.
The two Japanese automakers revealed last year that they were considering ways to work together and formally announced the merger talks in December. Their overarching goal was to better survive the “dramatic changes” in the automotive industry.
If they had come together, they would have created the world’s third-largest automaker. The two companies were also considering folding in Mitsubishi, which — along with French automaker Renault — is currently in a strategic alliance with Nissan.
