MZDAF - Mazda slips as CEO says China strategy needs overhaul

2023-07-14 11:34:33 ET

Mazda Motor Corporation ( OTCPK:MZDAY ) slid 1% on Friday after the carmaker’s chief executive officer said its China strategy needs to be overhauled.

The Japanese company is facing increasingly tough competition from domestic players, Reuters reported CEO Masahiro Moro as saying.

Business conditions in China are becoming increasingly tough, though Mazda ( OTCPK:MZDAY ) doesn’t plan on scaling back in the country. The automaker is planning to cut fixed costs.

"Production output will be low for the time being while pressure on profits is increasing," Moro said. "The important thing is to turn the tide and introduce electric vehicles one by one."

Mazda ( OTCPK:MZDAY ) has a joint venture in China with Chongqing Changan Automobile.

The company's sales in China last year were down 41% from the prior year to just over 108,000 vehicles. Sales in the country peaked in 2016 at just over 316,000 vehicles, Reuters reported .

Mazda Motor and Panasonic Energy agreed to start discussing a supply partnership for automotive cylindrical lithium-ion batteries aimed at electric vehicles.

More on Mazda:

• Mazda: Worrying Talk About Price Competition In China
• Mazda Motor Corporation: Beneficiary Of The Depreciating Yen
• Mazda North America reports June sales of 29.8k vehicles
• Mazda mulls EV battery supply collaboration with Panasonic Energy

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