Nissan cuts annual operating profit forecast after scandal

Japanese car giant Nissan on Wednesday downgraded its annual operating profit forecast after an inspection scandal in its home market Japan.

The auto giant now expects an operating profit of 645 billion yen ($5.7 billion) for the year to March, a cut from the previous forecast of 685 billion yen.

It left its forecast for net profit unchanged at 535 billion yen and sales at 11.8 trillion yen.

Before presenting the figures to journalists, Nissan chief executive Hiroto Saikawa bowed long and deep in apology.

"I would like to express my apologies to customers, partners, dealers and all the people who have been supporting Nissan," said Saikawa.

The scandal has "undermined the trust of all of you", he said, adding: "We would like to do our best to regain the trust of all of you."

Last month, Nissan said it was recalling some 1.2 million cars in Japan that had failed to meet domestic rules on final vehicle inspections.

The company confirmed that tests were performed by staff who were not certified to check the vehicles to Japanese government standards.

The automaker suspended all domestic production for a few weeks before resuming earlier this week, sending its passenger car sales plummeting more than 55 percent in Japan in October.