Honda, Nissan, and Mitsubishi are joining forces to operate together under a single holding company, in a bid to stave off fierce competition around the world.

Honda, Nissan, and Nissan's partner Mitsubishi are moving forward with a "business integration" to keep the Japanese automakers competitive

Honda, Nissan, and Mitsubishi have started talks about merging into a single company. The goal is to reach an agreement by June 2025, and complete the merger by August 2026. The new company could be the world’s third biggest automaker with 8 million annual sales.

The Honda-Nissan merger looks increasingly inevitable. The situation has come together rapidly. Reports in late November indicated the automaker only had a year’s worth of money to survive. The company was looking for a major investor to keep things going,

In a bold move to counter declining sales and mounting competition from Chinese automakers, Honda, Nissan, and Mitsubishi are in discussions to form a three-way merger. If finalized, the partnership will create the world’s third-largest carmaker, trailing only Toyota and Volkswagen in annual sales.

Japanese carmakers Honda and Nissan are discussing a merger with Mitsubishi Motors in a bid to counter fierce global competition in the field of electric vehicles, the companies said in a statement released after an emergency press conference on Monday.

The potential merger could help boost the auto companies production of electric vehicles amid growing changes in the car industry.

Facing extreme competitive pressure from the rise of Chinese EV makers, the Nos. 2 and 3 Japanese automakers turn to each other to build strength.

Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan will attempt to merge and create the world’s third-largest automaker by sales as the industry undergoes dramatic changes in its transition away from fossil fuels.

Honda's shares went up by as much 17% when local markets opened on Tuesday.