MONDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2016 BUSINESS Innovative technology driving ’s growth in Middle East Q&A with Samir Cherfan, Managing Director of Nissan Middle East

Kuwait Times: What are your views on the we witnessed an increase of 9.5 percent to step - is to secure both the regulatory frame- car is involved in a collision. nance is steady is one of the leading features whatever the terrain. performance of the automotive sector in the 7,222,000. To sum it up, the company sold 2.62 work and consumer adoption to make Nissan has already started pre-installing a of our all-new 2016. Nissan’s KT: Do you think the auto sector’s growth GCC region? million vehicles globally during the period, a autonomous driving a reality. small device within the car, which will be con- safety rating and commitment to keep total in the GCC will slow down as the market is 1.3 percent rise year-on-year, and that is some- At Nissan we are already working with nected via an Etisalat M2M SIM card. Nissan’s cost of maintenance very competitive across over-served? thing that we are very proud about. industry leaders to seek workable regulatory partnership with Etisalat on this strategic proj- the Middle East will bolster sales substantially Cherfan: Our regional strategy for success In 2015 Nissan was also named as one of standards. We have shown, in road tests, how ect ensures the smart application will run suc- over the coming years. Additionally a host of is based on the well-known Nissan global the world’s most valuable brands, according to new technologies such as automatic lane- cessfully on any smartphone, operating system factors contribute to the Nissan Maxima’s low- growth strategy ‘Power 88’, which our CEO Interbrand, the world-leading brand consul- changing and automated parking can enhance or service network. er running costs such as greater fuel efficiency, announced we would achieve tancy. In its Best Global Brands Study 2015, the driving experience, and make it safer. All this shows that Nissan is pioneering a new technologies, build quality, durability and by 2016. Under the Power 88 Mid Term plan which also named Nissan as the fastest-rising There is a big difference between more intuitive partnership between car and safety. we have announced Nissan Middle East tar- automotive brand, Nissan ranked 49, up from autonomous drive technology championed by driver, relieving the motorists of tasks that can In terms of its safety features, the all new geting to sell over 300K units by FY16 and 56 in 2014. The study also valued Nissan’s Nissan, and self-driving cars. Autonomous be safely automated. Nissan Maxima’s next-generation premium- reach 10 percent Market Share in the whole brand at $9.082 billion, up 19 percent from Drive is about relieving motorists of everyday KT: What are the new technologies that level technology features includes a standard region and 14.5 percent Market Share in the 2014. tasks, particularly in congested or long-dis- your brand has adopted in terms of improving 7.0-inch Advanced Drive Assist Display (ADAD) GCC. KT: Which was the biggest market in tance situations. The driver remains in control, vehicle performance, efficiency, safety etc.? within the instrument cluster. The vehicle Under the Power 88 Mid Term plan, Nissan GCC/Middle East, what were the best perform- at the wheel, of a car that is capable of doing Cherfan: As a customer centric company, boasts an extensive range of safety, security Middle East is focusing on Brand Power with ing models, and where did you see maximum more things automatically. Self-driving cars, by we try and understand what is important to and driving aids, including Predictive Forward the constant renewal of our Line-up. This growth? comparison, don’t require any human interven- our perspective buyers and then ensure that Collision Warning (PFCW), Intelligent Cruise includes engagement with our audiences, in Cherfan: Earlier in May 2015, we tion - and remain a long-way from commercial we can offer models that offer the features that Control (ICC), Forward Emergency Braking particular the youth, through unique and dif- announced our financial results for our 2014 reality. They are suitable only for tightly-con- people need. (FEB), Rear Cross Traffic Alert (CTA) and Blind ferentiating platforms such as GT Academy, fiscal year (April 1st to 31st March), which trolled road-environments, at slow speeds, and Spot Warning (BSW). which takes virtual gamers and transforms demonstrated that in the UAE, Nissan main- face a regulatory minefield. Performance with the All New NISMO Line-Up The all new Nissan Maxima 2016 also offers them into racers. In addition to this, we are tained its strong No 2 position in the sales That is why Nissan is focused on In terms of offering new models with an available Driver Attention Alert (DAA) sys- focusing on Sales Power with quality and charts, selling 63,036 units - up by 10 percent autonomous drive technologies that we know improved performance, Nissan just launched tem which monitors steering input patterns to quantity of the network, and a strong empha- versus 2013 and achieving 15.3 percent mar- will work, and can be introduced over the next our motorsport brand, NISMO in the Middle establish a baseline and helps alert the driver sis on customer experience excellence. Samir Cherfan, Managing ket share. Nissan’s purchase consideration in 4 to 5 years. We aim to be ready with revolu- East. By bringing the ‘NISMO’ Brand to the when drowsy or inattentive driving is detected As an example and as a proof to our con- Director of Nissan Middle East the UAE has also increased by 46 percent in tionary, commercially viable autonomous driv- Middle East, we are proving our passion for (only on Nissan Maxima SR grade). stant line up renewal over the last months we the past two years, closing the gap with the ing technology by 2020, with a goal of bringing performance, as well as heralding the next step In addition, the all new Nissan Maxima have launched the all new Nissan Maxima market leader. the next two autonomous-drive technologies in ‘Innovation that Excites’ for regional motor- 2016 showcases ‘Safety Shield’, which is a sys- 2016 and introduced the performance arm of Cherfan: If we look at the overall perform- In KSA, after the first full year of operation to market by 2016. sports enthusiasts. tem of cameras, sensors and actuators that Nissan in the region known as NISMO with the ance of the automotive sector on a calendar of its revival plan, Nissan with its Kingdom An example of this technology is our As part of our performance road car line- monitors risk all around the car and can help announcement of a world premiere - the year basis then the GCC market is considered wide dealer Alissa Auto has reached the 3rd “Safety Shield” - a system of cameras, sensors up, we showcased three NISMO models - the to avert an accident. This includes fully-auto- Nissan Patrol NISMO. In addition, we also stable. However, we have seen a recent pro- position in sales with 61,806 units, reaching 7.2 and actuators that monitors risk all around the 370Z NISMO, the GT-R NISMO, and the Patrol mated parking systems and a traffic-jam pilot, launched the Nissan Patrol Desert Edition in gressive market decline over the last couple of percent market share, which represents 141.7 car and can help to avert an accident. This NISMO. The Patrol NISMO was a world-pre- in which cars will have the capability to drive collaboration with the Middle East’s most months. When operating in tough market con- percent growth year on year vs FY13. includes fully-automated parking systems and miere for Nissan as we could not have autonomously and safely on congested high- famous and influential motorsports personali- ditions, we need to be more dynamic and Furthermore Nissan Brand Purchase a traffic-jam pilot, in which cars will have the launched NISMO in the region without includ- ways. ty, Dr Mohammed Ben Sulayem. To continue make an effort to be closer to the needs of our Consideration has strengthened by 27 percent capability to drive autonomously and safely on ing our most iconic model - the Nissan Patrol - KT: What are the major challenges for the keeping our consumers at core and providing customers. reaching the second position in the market. congested highways. This will be followed in in the range of NISMO vehicles. auto sector/your brand in the GCC? with best auto experience, we launched the At Nissan, we have continued to deliver In our last financial year, the Nissan line-up 2018 by the introduction of multiple-lane con- We Recognized that off-roading and Cherfan: In addition to the oil price and ‘Nissan SmartCar’ mobile app in collaboration against our Power 88 brand strategy into our has performed extremely well across the spec- trols, allowing cars to autonomously negotiate motorsports form the life-blood of regional currency fluctuation challenges which we with Etisalat. financial year 2015, adding to our constant trum but sales of the famed Patrol, dubbed the hazards and change lanes. Before the end of drive enthusiasts, therefore we believe the time highlighted earlier, it is about constantly listen- At Nissan, we strive to create unique expe- line-up of models available in the region. As riences to engage with our audiences. Our proof of this we have launched the all new ‘Nissan Patrol: The Movie’ activation at the Nissan Maxima 2016 and also introduced the recent Dubai International Motor Show is an performance arm of Nissan in the region - example of reaching out to our direct and indi- known as NISMO. Alongside the launch of the rect consumers. ‘Nissan Patrol: The Movie’ uses NISMO brand in the Middle East, we also the latest in green screen technology and revealed a world premiere - the Nissan Patrol blockbuster cinema camera equipment so NISMO. that people can have the chance to star in an KT: With low oil prices, UAE fuel deregula- action-packed movie trailer, featuring the 2016 tion, expected cuts in fuel subsidies in other Nissan Patrol. GCC countries, how do you see the auto sector KT: How is Nissan contributing to the glob- behaving in 2016? al efforts being made around the climate Cherfan: This year there has been added change? pressure on the Middle East’s GDP due to fluc- Cherfan: At Nissan, we are big believers in tuations in oil price. However, reports show supporting sustainable driving as a contribu- that GDP growth across GCC region in particu- tion to all the global efforts that are being lar will remain positive with a slight downward made by governments and industry leaders trend compared to last year. ‘Hero of all Terrains in Life’, the facelifted Juke, ing to the market needs and deliver on our around climate change. As a testament to that, At this stage, it is still too early to see any the , Pathfinder and X-Trail have strategy. the -Nissan alliance provided 200 elec- effect of petrol price deregulation in the UAE been exceptional. Under the Power 88 Mid Term plan, Nissan tric vehicles to the International Conference at on the automotive sector. However, this strate- The , over the past year, has Middle East is focusing on Brand Power with COP21 that took place in Paris earlier in gic decision should encourage people across forged ahead with highly impressive sales the constant renewal of our Line-up. This November. The fleet covered around 400 km the country to consider using more fuel effi- results. The vehicle now has a six per cent includes engagement with our audiences, in during the event and emitted zero emissions cient vehicles such as Hybrids. share of the SUV-S market segment - jumping particular the youth, through unique and dif- while driving. At Nissan we are believers in supporting from five per cent a year ago. In the UAE, the ferentiating platforms such as GT Academy, The fleet was the world’s largest electric sustainable driving technology and offering Juke’s share has jumped from eight to 11 per which takes virtual gamers and transforms vehicle fleet ever provided to an international greater fuel efficiency across all of our models. cent and, in March 2015, it was the best-selling them into racers. In addition to this, we are conference, and further strengthened the The All New Nissan Maxima 2016, which was car in its segment in the entire country. It’s a focusing on Sales Power with quality and alliance’s position as the official passenger-car launched recently in the Middle East, is a great success story repeated throughout the region quantity of the network, and a strong empha- provider for the United Nations’ COP21 climate example of how innovative technology can and, as Nissan Middle East looks forward to sis on customer experience excellence. conference. provide high performance teamed with being 2016, it does so from a position of enormous At Nissan, we continuously listen to our The COP21 car fleet featured the Renault the most fuel efficient car in its segment. Its strength through ‘Innovation that Excites’. customers’ needs through which we recog- ZOE , the com- 3.5-liter VQ-series V6 has been redesigned The Nissan Sunny also attributed to the nized that off-roading and motorsports form pact car and the 7-seater Nissan e-NV200 van. with more than 60 percent new parts (com- record breaking results, by achieving 29,688 the decade, we will introduce intersection- is right to introduce the Patrol NISMO in the the life-blood of regional drive enthusiasts. The vehicles were available to shuttle dele- pared to the previous generation 3.5-liter V6). units in 2014 with 30 percent sales growth autonomy, enabling vehicles to negotiate city Middle East as proof of our commitment to As proof of our commitment to making gates 24 hours, seven days a week to and from This revised engine helps it achieve an antici- from last year. recorded 15 cross-roads without driver intervention. making thrilling driving experiences accessible thrilling driving experiences accessible to all the Le Bourget conference venue, as a com- pated 15 percent increase in highway fuel per cent growth with 6,800 units and the Today cars like the new Qashqai and new X- to all our customers. our customers, we recently added the Patrol plement to public transportation. economy to an EPA estimated 30 miles per gal- Nissan X-Trail recorded a significant growth Trail have advanced park-assist systems. By NISMO and the Patrol Desert Edition to the This marked the first time the UN have lon. increase of 300 per cent with 4,400 units. We 2017, we expect parking to be fully automated, Efficiency & Sustainability in the All New Patrol family. used a zero-emission or 100 percent electric We also recently launched the Pathfinder have also witnessed a significant rise in fleet and by 2019 increasingly remote - so that cars Maxima 2016 Nissan Patrol NISMO, a race-inspired ver- fleet for its entire passenger-car shuttle at a cli- Hybrid in the UAE, which offers a best-in-class sales in the recent results within our LCV seg- can be parked in a controlled setting without a In recent years we have noticed that there sion of Nissan’s legendary SUV-Patrol pow- mate summit, and we were glad to be the offi- range of 785KM on a single tank and a further ment, with the Nissan Urvan recording a 24 driver at the wheel. has been a peak in the interest of more fuel ered with a Takumi tuned engine that pro- cial transportation partner. efficient fuel consumption of 9.1L/100km. percent growth in GCC compared to last year. In addition, we have already started efficient vehicles that also come with a host of duces 428 HP for exhilarating performance. In addition to that, earlier in May 2015 we *Fuel economy based on 2016 EPA fuel Our growth strategy is to focus on estab- deploying the idea of connected cars in the safety and technology features. We are big The model comes with a torque improve- announced our great progress in reducing economy estimates for 2016 Nissan Maxima. lishing the highest levels of quality and region with our latest announcement of the believers in supporting sustainable driving ment of over 70 percent rev-range, NISMO CO2 emissions and improving sustainability in Actual mileage may vary with driving condi- expanding our network in Saudi Arabia, which ‘Nissan SmartCar’ mobile app in partnership technology and offering greater fuel efficiency 22” RAYS forged-alloy wheels and NISMO our global corporate activities in fiscal year tions - use for comparison only. currently represents a significant market share with Etisalat. The ‘Nissan SmartCar’ mobile app across all our models. tuned suspension using ‘Bilstein’ shock 2014, while simultaneously increasing vehicle KT: How would you sum up performance of our business model. is the region’s first connected car deployment, These features are all also included in our absorbers for improved handling and ride production and plant energy efficiency. The of your auto brand in 9M 2015? KT: What do connected cars mean for the which is the coming together of communica- Nissan Pathfinder Hybrid. We believe this mod- comfort. company achieved a 22.6 percent cut in CO2 Cherfan: The first half of 2015 (April to industry? When we’ll have such vehicles in the tions and auto technologies, information sys- el appeals to a wide consumer base. With its Nissan Patrol Desert Edition, a new model when compared to fiscal year 2005, thus September) was a successful period this year region? tems and safety devices for increased levels of impressive power and space as an SUV, it is a conceptualized and developed in collabora- achieving its goal to reduce CO2 emissions for Nissan on a global level. We saw net rev- Cherfan: Consumers nowadays want tech- sophistication and automation in vehicles. great choice for the outgoing explorer. Its fuel tion with the Middle East’s most famous and from corporate activities by 20 percent during enue of 5.93 trillion yen, an increase of 15.3 nologies and automated systems that enable Through the recently launched mobile app, efficiency credentials also make it a desirable influential motorsports personality, Dr that period. percent versus 5.14 trillion yen a year ago. In them to drive safely, for longer. While zero- powered by Etisalat’s network and M2M choice for families that do a lot of driving and Mohammed Ben Sulayem, is powered by Nissan continues to work toward achieving terms of operating profit, it was 395 billion emission vehicles are one solution to mega- Control Center platform, the all-new Nissan are more conscious about running costs. Nissan’s powerful 5.6L that gener- its environmental targets set forth in the com- yen, up from 261.9 billion yen, a 50.8 percent city pollution, another will be greater vehicle Maxima 2016 and the Nissan Patrol MY16 will ates a formidable 400hp and 560Nm of pany’s action plan, Nissan Green Program increase. autonomy. Autonomous technology already provide customers with convenience, control Safety & Security in the All New Nissan torque. It is mated to a 7-speed automatic 2016 (NGP2016), through a number of innova- Nissan’s net income was 485.0 billion yen, exists in our industry. Motorists don’t think and security. It will allow drivers to remotely Maxima 2016 that incorporates manual mode tive sustainability initiatives in Corporate an increase of 37.4 percent versus 237 billion twice about using automatic transmissions or lock or unlock their vehicles, control cooling Nissan’s commitment to the highest stan- and synchronised rev control - a set up that Carbon Footprint Minimization and Zero yen in the prior year, as for the unit sales count, cruise control. The next step - and it’s a big and even instantly message the owner if the dards and best value in total cost of mainte- guarantees unmatched driving enjoyment, Emission Vehicle Penetration. Japan adopts negative interest rates

NBK MONEY MARKETS REPORT Another bomb dropped on investors this Friday, with announcement. The negative rate interest rates poli- severity of the imported disinflation. The BoJ’s move OPEC were looking at setting up talks to discuss pro- significant pullback in capital spending in 2016. the Bank of Japan adopting a negative interest-rate cy takes effect on February 16 and will operate simi- should ultimately result in more currency wars and duction cuts. Crude peaked at $34.82 following the Another weak data was the Dallas Fed January strategy in the face of a weakening economy and a lar to programs in Europe. continuing slowdown in global trade and growth. news before settling down to close the week at manufacturing activity index coming at -34.6, its low- global slowdown. The move to penalize banks’ In addition to the move, the BoJ delayed its target In this whole chaos, the Euro traded in a narrow $33.62. Brent followed suit at $35.99, however ended est level since April 2009 against consensus of -14.0. reserves will be added to the BOJ’s asset-purchase date of reaching its 2 percent inflation goal by six range the whole week between 1.07090 and the the week at $35.80 One respondent said that “We expect the continued program already in place. With a 5 to 4 vote, Kuroda months, aiming for the first half of fiscal 2017, while 1.0960 level. As mentioned earlier, the Yen was the depression in the oil and gas industry to negatively introduced a negative rate of 0.1 percent on certain also downgrading current year forecasts. The Yen ini- major loser closing the week dropping 4 percent Bleak US data impact our customer base and result in significant excess holdings of cash. tially plummeted over 2 percent, rallied back, and against the dollar. Growth currencies behaved well This week, very soft durable and capital goods demand reduction. The decision came after year on year inflation closed the extremely volatile Friday at 121.14 against this week helped by a dovish Fed and the BoJ trying order numbers in the US raised the prospects of fur- On the employment front, initial jobless claims came at -0.3 percent where expectations were for a the dollar. Japanese equity markets also reacted vio- to refuel a risk taking environment. Canadian Dollar ther downside risk to activity levels in Q1 2016. decline 16k last week to 278k which was slightly bet- flat number. Industrial production and household lently to the move with the Nikkei up over +3 percent closed the week up 2 percent against the dollar Headline durable goods orders for December ter than the 281k expected. In addition, the latest spending also weakened, which prompted the BoJ initially, then tumbled to losses of -1 percent, but while the Australian Dollar closed 1.7 percent came at -5.1 percent much below expectations for a housing market data was less supportive with pend- to intervene on Friday. bounced back to end the week adding 2.8 percent. For now, we remain in a binary scenario. Either more modest -0.7 percent drop. The data excluding ing home sales only up +0.1 percent against expec- Last week, BoJ governor Kuroda said there were Clearly, the measures taken by the BoJ are aimed Chinese worries abate with oil stabilizes at around transportation was also weak at -1.2 percent against tation of 0.9 percent increase last month. The only no signs that the global economic slowdown had at cheapening the currency. Similarly to the Euro, the these levels as we had witnessed in August- expectations of -0.1 percent. Core capital goods positive other release was the Kansas City Fed manu- damaged Japan corporates plans; however the move negative rates should encourage investors to choose September 2015, or China continues to devalue its orders fell -4.3 percent against expectations of - 0.2 facturing activity index which was unchanged at -9 clearly proves policy makers have acted in an the Yen as a funding currency. With its latest meas- currency, the US slows down, and the volatility envi- percent, which was the largest monthly decline since with expectations of -10 attempt to avoid Japan entering in a major slow- ures, the Bank of Japan entered again into a currency ronment we have witnessed in the beginning of the October 2014. down. war on the back of China trying to devalue its year returns back. The data showed a significant downward Kuwait In summary, the BoJ adopted the same strategy Renminbi in the ongoing persistent commodity On the commodities side, oil once again domi- momentum in private domestic demand. In addition, Kuwaiti dinar at 0.30310 as the ECB in an attempt to tackle inflation and the price disinflation. The BoJ will allow Japan to borrow nated the news this week as headlines which ended the ongoing weakness in oil prices has put a lot of The USDKWD opened at 0.30310 yesterday Yen reacted instantaneously tumbling after the more growth from its trading partners and limit the up just being rumors suggested that Russia and pressure on corporate activities in the US implying a morning.