Mazda, Nippon Steel Reinforce Ties to Cut Costs

Tokyo, Oct. 23 (Jiji Press)–Mazda Motor Corp. said Thursday that it has strengthened collaboration with Nippon Steel Corp. in vehicle development and materials procurement, aiming to cut costs while securing vehicles’ safety performance. The step came as Mazda sought to make its supply chain robust amid pressure on profit from U.S. President Donald Trump’s steep tariffs. The two Japanese companies have applied the strengthened collaboration framework to develop an all-new version of Mazda’s CX-5 crossover SUV that was released in July. Nippon Steel joined the project before the car’s design was finalized, helping select materials such as steel sheets and reviewing procurement methods. By leveraging the steelmaker’s technologies, the automaker succeeded in reducing the number of parts and making the vehicle body lighter. “It would be more cost-saving to build cars together,” said Kazuhiko Sumi, managing executive officer at Mazda. The automaker plans to expand the approach to other models in the future. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]