TOKYO: French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday there was no need for the government to lower its stake in Renault and that he wanted the Renault-Nissan alliance to work on strengthening its synergies.
Relations have been strained between the alliance members since the shock arrest in November of former boss Carlos Ghosn, but Macron referred to that as an individual situation that should not have a bearing on their partnership.
“Nothing in this situation justifies changing the cross shareholdings, the rules of governance, and the state’s shareholding in Renault, which has nothing to do with Nissan,” Macron told reporters.
Macron’s comment contradicts recent remarks by Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire that the government was ready to reduce its 15 percent stake in Renault in the interest of bolstering the automaker’s alliance with Japan’s Nissan Motor.
“I wish for the group to maintain its stability concentrating on the essential and that synergies between Renault and Nissan continue to be strengthened,” said Macron, who was in Japan on an official state visit ahead of the G20 in Osaka.
“The future of the group is how it can become leader in electric vehicles and one of the leaders in autonomous vehicles … I think the future is more of a growing integration.”
Despite the French government’s frequent calls for Renault and Nissan to strengthen their partnership, Nissan has been unhappy with what it sees as an unequal relationship and has rebuffed previous suggestions of an outright merger.
Renault owns 43 percent of Nissan which has surpassed its French partner in size since being rescued by it two decades ago. Nissan holds a 15 percent, non-voting stake in its partner.
Nissan Chief Executive Hiroto Saikawa said at a shareholders’ meeting this week the Japanese automaker would “postpone discussions” on the future direction of the alliance as it prioritized recovery of its financial performance.
No need to lower French government’s stake in Renault: Macron
No need to lower French government’s stake in Renault: Macron
- Relations have been strained between the alliance members since the shock arrest in November of former boss Carlos Ghosn
- Renault owns 43 percent of Nissan, which in turn holds a 15 percent, non-voting stake in its French partner
Closing Bell: Saudi main index closes in red at 11,167
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index dipped on Wednesday, losing 46.43 points, or 0.41 percent, to close at 11,167.54.
The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR4.88 billion ($1.30 billion), as 66 of the listed stocks advanced, while 192 retreated.
The MSCI Tadawul Index decreased, down 5.52 points, or 0.37 percent, to close at 1,506.55.
The Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu lost 153.40 points, or 0.65 percent, to close at 23,486.52. This comes as 32 of the listed stocks advanced, while 31 retreated.
The best-performing stock was Tourism Enterprise Co., with its share price surging 9.95 percent to SR14.36.
Other top performers included Mobile Telecommunication Co., Saudi Arabia, which saw its share price rise by 5.32 percent to SR11.48, and Al Masar Al Shamil Education Co., which saw a 4.86 percent increase to SR22.89.
On the downside, Almoosa Health Co. was the day’s weakest performer, with its share price falling 4.81 percent to SR150.40.
Dallah Healthcare Co. fell 3.81 percent to SR113.50, while Saudi Research and Media Group dropped 3.44 percent to SR100.90.
On the corporate front, Arabian Plastic Industrial Co. has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with K. K. Nag to explore the establishment of a specialized manufacturing facility for expanded polypropylene products.
According to a Tadawul statement, the agreement sets out initial mutual obligations and rights between the two parties as part of APICO’s broader expansion strategy to increase production capacity and meet rising industrial demand.
The company’s share price rose 1.21 percent to SR43.52 on the parallel market.
