Recently, the financial report for fiscal year 219 released by Mazda (April 1, 219-March 31, 22) shows that Mazda's operating income in fiscal year 219 was 3,43.3 billion yen, down 4% year-on-year; Operating profit was 43.6 billion yen, down 47% year on year. Operating profit dropped significantly, almost halved, hitting an eight-year low. Mazda said that the obvious decline in operating income and operating profit in fiscal year 219 was mainly due to the impact of the novel coronavirus epidemic on the industry. However, the decline after the epidemic can be attributed to the impact of the epidemic. What about the decline before the epidemic?

According to public data, Mazda sold 1.598 million vehicles worldwide in 219, down 7.2% year-on-year. In addition to the sales volume of 292, vehicles in the European market, which increased by 7.3% year-on-year, China, the United States, Japan and other markets all ended up with a serious decline in sales volume in 219. Among them, the sales volume of China automobile market was 278,6 vehicles, down 7.2% year-on-year, the sales volume of the United States market was 22.78%, down 16.4% year-on-year, and the sales volume of Japanese market was 23, vehicles, down 7.8% year-on-year. It can be seen that Mazda was already in a downward trend before the epidemic.

At the same time, from the financial report released by Mazda in the third quarter of 219, it can be seen that the company had shown an obvious downward trend before the outbreak of the epidemic. The third fiscal quarter (October 1, 219-December 31, 219) showed that Mazda's operating profit was 15.8 billion yen, down 37% year-on-year, while the net profit attributable to the parent company was about 6.5 billion yen, down 76% year-on-year.

Therefore, on the whole, the epidemic may not be the main reason for Mazda's decline in operating profit in fiscal year 219, but the epidemic has made this enterprise more "difficult".

as we all know, the spread of novel coronavirus around the world has hindered the production and sales of many automobile markets, and the automobile industry has been pressed the "pause button". Mazda is no exception. Due to the epidemic, the company suspended a number of factories and the production capacity was significantly reduced.

specifically, in March this year, Mazda suspended the production tasks of four factories in Japan and overseas, and the global production was cut by 6, units. From March 28th to April 3th, Mazda suspended the operation of two factories in Hiroshima and Yamaguchi in western Japan for 13 days, and suspended the night shift for 8 days. In addition, Mazda has temporarily closed its factory in Mexico for 1 days from March 25th. At the same time, Mazda also suspended its factory in Thailand from March 3, and the production suspension time was about 1 days.

the epidemic situation not only hindered the production capacity, but also caused the sales volume to be sluggish. After the outbreak of the epidemic, the only European market where Mazda's sales volume is increasing has also experienced a sharp decline. In February this year, Mazda predicted that the annual sales volume would drop by about 4%, and lowered the annual sales target to 1.5 million vehicles.

the production capacity and sales volume are blocked, and the impact on Mazda is immeasurable. It is understood that Mazda is currently insolvent. As of March 31, 22, Mazda's cash flow was-92.7 billion, and the company's interest-bearing debt exceeded 65 billion yen. Not only that, Mazda also recently sought loans totaling 3 billion yen (about 21 billion yuan) from Mitsubishi Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and Mizuho Financial Group. In addition, Mazda also plans to announce a new financing plan to add new safety features to existing models.

at the same time, in order to save costs, Mazda plans not to launch any brand-new models before March 222, and the existing models will not be significantly modified and replaced, but will focus on developing large-scale vehicle platforms and in-line six-cylinder gasoline/diesel engines.

I don't know if Mazda thought that it would be a fatal blow to dealers if there were no new products and brands didn't cut prices for two years at a time when the automobile market was going down and consumption was cautious. It is understood that at present, many dealers have begun to quit the network and resell other brands. When Mazda regroups two years later, what will the sales channel be like? What's more, it's difficult for Mazda's two joint ventures in China, namely Changan Mazda and FAW Mazda, to merge, which is also one of the factors that plague Mazda.

affected by the overseas epidemic, the sales volume in overseas markets is still very low at present. The China auto market, where the epidemic prevention and control has basically stabilized, is gradually picking up. In April, China auto market ended its decline for more than 2 consecutive months, and Mazda and China auto market kept pace with each other, achieving a slight year-on-year increase.

Mazda sold 17,91 vehicles in China in April, a slight increase of 1% year-on-year; From January to April, the cumulative sales volume in China was 53,442 vehicles, down 23% year-on-year. Among them, FAW Mazda sold 771 vehicles in April, and the cumulative sales volume in 1-4 months was 21177 vehicles; Changan Mazda sold 1,2 vehicles in April and 32,265 vehicles in the first four months.

In terms of specific vehicle types, Mazda 3 Angkeira, mazda 6 Artz, Mazda CX-4 and Mazda CX-5 performed well, with 24,17 vehicles, 1,36 vehicles, 11,141 vehicles and 7,9 vehicles completed in January and April respectively. Among them, Mazda 3 Angkeira's total sales performance from January to April was the best, accounting for 45% of Mazda's total sales in China.

Recently, Mazda officially announced that the Mazda CX-3, which is positioned as a compact SUV, will be launched soon. The official said that the design of this model is easier to attract young people's favor. In terms of power, it is equipped with a 2.L naturally aspirated engine, with a maximum output of 18 HP and a peak torque of 224 Nm. At the same time, the engine has 24V light mixing function, the motor type is AC synchronous motor, the maximum output power is 6.5 HP, and the peak torque is 61 Nm. Can this model help boost sales growth and bring Mazda out of the misery?

at the end, the continuous decline in sales volume was hit by novel coronavirus, and the impact on Mazda was incalculable. Although the epidemic prevention and control in China has been stable, the automobile market rose slightly in April. However, we must understand that the slight increase in sales of China auto market in April was caused by multiple factors such as policy support, multiple preferential policies and the release of overstocked consumption. The auto market may not be able to continue to rise in May, and the market environment is still grim. In addition, the global epidemic prevention and control has not completely entered a stable period, especially the European and American markets, which are important for Mazda, are still in a state of decline, which is also quite severe for Mazda. Coupled with factors such as not reducing prices, not pushing brand-new products for two years, and insolvency, it is still quite difficult for Mazda to "pick up".

This article comes from the author of Chejia, car home, and does not represent car home's standpoint.