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Renault posts loss, Nissan shares tumble

Nissan shares fell to their lowest in 10 and a half years on Friday (February 14) tumbling nearly 10 percent after the struggling auto maker cut its annual profit forecast

It also said it would not pay a dividend in the second half.

Japan's No.2 car maker has been shaken by the scandal surrounding former boss Carlos Ghosn.

The crisis has been compounded by worsening sales and a brand image tarnished by years of heavy discounting in the U.S. and other markets.

On Thursday Nissan posted its first quarterly net loss in nearly a decade.

The dividend cut will be particularly painful for top shareholder Renault.

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On Friday the French carmaker, in turn, posted its first loss in 10 years for 2019 and set a lower operating margin goal for 2020.

It's a crunch year for Renault's planned reboot of its alliance with Nissan.

The company is grappling with tumbling auto demand in some key markets like China.

Adding further pressure, Renault has a factory in China's Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus epidemic.

It's in lockdown to contain the spread of the virus.

It has also suspended operations for at least four days at its South Korean subsidiary due to supply chain hiccups.

Renault made an annual loss of $153 million in 2019.

And group sales fell 3.3%.