The rising value of the yen is making it ever more difficult for the Japanese automakers to turn a profit, which has forced Nissan to shift some of its Japanese production. In a bid to cut global costs and safeguard itself against the rising yen, Nissan will shift some of its production from Japan to Mexico.
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Subaru, one of the few bright spots in the auto industry this year, says that it will buck industry trends and post a small sales increase over 2008 sales when it reports final figures after the new year. Subaru’s year-to-date sales were up 1.2 percent at the end of November, compared to an overall industry that was down more than 16 percent in the same period.
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