Japanese automaker Nissan on Thursday logged a 10.9% drop in net profit for the six months to September due to a decline in global sales and rising material costs.

The firm's bottom-line profit fell to ¥246.3 billion ($2.2 billion) from ¥276.5 billion registered in the same six-month period last year.

Down on last year

Sales came in at ¥5.5 trillion, down 2.1% compared to last year's figures.

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Nissan, allied with Renault SA of France, maintained its annual forecasts, with net profit forecast at ¥500 billion on sales of ¥12 trillion.

Global vehicle sales fell 1.8% to 2.68 million units for the six months due to declines in North America and Europe.

The gloomy results were in sharp contrast with upward revisions of full-year forecasts by rivals Honda and Toyota, which both also posted sales and profit gains for the six-month period.