Nissan - willing to sacrifice share target to ensure profitability

YOKOHAMA, Japan (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co would be willing to fall short of its global market share target of 8 percent by end-March 2017 in order to ensure it meets an 8 percent operating profit margin goal for the same period, Corporate Vice President Joji Tagawa said on Monday.

Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn has set aggressive targets of boosting the Japanese car maker's operating profit margin as well as global market share to 8 percent each by the financial year to March 2017, but a sales slowdown in markets such as Thailand and Russia as well as product recalls have cast doubt over whether they can be reached.

Nissan's operating profit margin for the nine months to December was 4.7 percent, based on accounting standards in place when it set the 8 percent targets. It has since adjusted those standards, resulting in a drop in the margin to 4.1 percent, although the targets will continue to be assessed on the basis of the previous standards. Its current global market share is around 6 percent, Tagawa told reporters.

(Reporting by Yoko Kubota; Editing by Edmund Klamann)