Nissan shares have risen following news that Chief Financial Officer Stephen Ma is set to step down from his position, the latest executive to exit the carmaker during a challenging time.

The stock gained as much as 1% in early morning trading, though the shares are still down almost 35% this year.

It’s not clear whether Ma may be demoted or leave the company, according to a person familiar with the situation, who asked not to be identified because the move hasn’t been announced. The change, which comes 17 months after Ashwani Gupta left as Nissan’s chief operating officer, follows an announcement last month that the firm will eliminate 9,000 jobs and cut a fifth of its manufacturing capacity.