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Investing.com-- Nissan (OTC:NSANY) shares closed sharply higher in Asia trading Friday after the Financial Times (FT) reported that a high-level Japanese group, including former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, is proposing that Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) invest in struggling carmaker Nissan Motor (TYO:7201) following the collapse of its merger talks with Honda (NYSE:HMC) Motor Co Ltd (TYO:7267).
The company’s stock closed 9.5% higher at 458.80 Japanese yen, the highest since early January. Honda shares climbed 1% in Tokyo.
The FT report, citing sources familiar with the matter, said that the initiative is being led by Hiro Mizuno, a former Tesla board member, and is supported by Suga and his former aide Hiroto Izumi, the FT report stated.
The group hopes that Elon Musk’s Tesla will become a strategic investor, leveraging Nissan’s underutilized U.S. factories to expand domestic production amid US tariff threats, it added.
The plan emerged after Nissan walked away from Honda’s $58 billion merger proposal, raising fears of a potential takeover by foreign investors, including Taiwanese tech giant Foxconn (SS:601138).
The FT reported that Tesla’s interest could counter such risks while boosting its manufacturing footprint in the US.
Nissan’s U.S. plants in Tennessee and Mississippi have a combined capacity of 1 million vehicles but produced only 525,000 units in 2024. Tesla’s investment would help ramp up production, the FT said.
Neither Tesla, Musk, Nissan, nor other involved parties have officially announced any such news.
Ayushman Ojha contributed to this report.