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Nissan's big price cuts threatening others' profits

Bloomberg reports Nissan may be keeping the competition up at night even more than normal. The Japanese automaker recently cut prices on seven of its models and bolstered incentive offerings in an attempt to gain market share in the US, and the strategy is working. Last month saw the company's sales leap by 25 percent, which is nearly triple the industry average. Nissan is currently taking advantage of the weak yen - Japanese currency has fallen by 15 percent against the dollar, which has given the automaker around $1,500 per car to use to either add features or cut prices. Some analysts are calling the policy "scorched earth."
Meanwhile, American automakers like Ford, General Motors and Chrysler are doing their best to keep from sliding back into old bad habits. The Detroit Three have steadily moved away from a discount and incentive strategy to bring in new buyers since the 2009 recession. Those short-sighted tactics helped paved the way for bankruptcy at both GM and Chrysler. As Bloomberg reports, the resolve to stay away from big discounts may falter if Toyota begins using similar tactics.

Lebanon has 40 days to figure out what to do with Carlos Ghosn

BEIRUT — Lebanon and Japan have about 40 days to decide whether ousted Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn will be extradited to Japan or stand trial in Lebanon, a judicial source and a source close to Ghosn said on Thursday, following his escape from Japan. Ghosn fled to Lebanon, his childhood home, as he was awaiting trial on charges of under-reporting earnings, breach of trust and misappropriation of company funds, all of which he denies. Japan and Lebanon have no extradition agreement, and Lebanon does not typically hand over its nationals. Ghosn's legal team is hoping to hold the trial in Lebanon, where the former auto executive has deep ties and hopes to clear his name. Japan has in recent days asked Lebanon to clarify what files Tokyo needs to send as part of an official extradition request, the two sources said. "They came back and requested a clarification. Today, we sent that to the Japanese," the judicial source said. That communication is significant because, according to Lebanon's rules for dealing with Interpol notices, it triggers a roughly 40-day period by the end of which agreement must be reached between the countries on where and how Ghosn will stand trial, the sources said. Japan must now either send a formal extradition request to Lebanon or send Ghosn's file to Beirut and agree on a process for trying him there, the source close to Ghosn said. An Interpol spokesperson said on Friday the organization did not itself dictate a timeframe or require any action to be taken by countries and such a framework is set locally. Ghosn, who holds Lebanese, French, and Brazilian nationality, was questioned earlier this month by Lebanese prosecutors who confiscated his passport and imposed a travel ban as part of the Interpol arrest warrant process. The source close to Ghosn said the former executive can appeal to Lebanon's prosecutor to drop the ban and return his passport if Japan does not respond within the timeframe. Japanese prosecutors have said they are still pushing for Ghosn to be tried in Japan. Ghosn has struck out at what he has called Japan's unjust judicial system and said the alternative to fleeing would have been to spend the rest of his life languishing in Tokyo without a fair trial. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.     Government/Legal Weird Car News Nissan Renault Carlos Ghosn

'I'm glad he did it': Carole Ghosn slams Japanese justice system

BEIRUT — Carlos and Carole Ghosn, the former first couple of carmaker Nissan, are united again in Beirut. They hold hands in the street and whisper together in a mix of Arabic and French. They kiss. But the pair's most visceral display of unity comes when they talk about Carlos Ghosn's former home. "I'm done with Japan," said Carole Ghosn in an interview with her husband in a private house in Beirut. Two weeks ago, Carlos Ghosn made a dramatic escape from house arrest in Japan, where he was awaiting trial on charges of under-reporting earnings, breach of trust and misappropriation of company funds. He denies all charges. Shortly after Ghosn appeared in Beirut, Japanese authorities issued an arrest warrant for Carole on suspicion of alleged perjury related to the misappropriation charge against her husband. "What they're accusing me of is a bit of a joke," said the 54-year-old Lebanese-American national, who spent many years as a fashion designer in New York and whose children live in the U.S. city.  "I testified for hours and they told me you are free to go, and now, nine months later ... this comes up. They are vindictive. This has nothing to do with the law."   Related: Yamaha warns to stay out of large musical instrument cases after Ghosn escape Ghosn says French ambassador told him: 'Nissan is turning against you'   Carlos Ghosn was even more adamant. "I spent 18 years in Japan; I never suspected this brutality, this lack of fairness, this lack of empathy." Tokyo prosecutors have said his allegations of a conspiracy are false and that he has failed to justify his acts. The plan to flee to his childhood home of Lebanon developed quickly with a small group of people, a "reasonable price" and utter secrecy, he said. "The first rule if you want to do something like is that no member of your family should be aware because they become very anxious," he added. Asked whether she would have dissuaded him from escaping, Carole Ghosn blurted: "Yes!" But then she paused, looked at her husband and added: "No. I mean, actually, let me rephrase. If you told me this at the beginning, I would have said, 'No, of course not. You're going to fight this and prove your innocence.' ... But then, with time, we saw how the prosecutors were behaving ... I said 'Oh my God, my husband is never going to get a fair trial,' and I was desperate." "I'm happy he did it," she said. Japan's justice minister has said Ghosn's escape from his trial could constitute a crime.