The economic slump continued to plague the nation's five major automakers in fiscal 1998, forcing some to accelerate restructuring efforts, according to their annual earnings reports released as of Thursday.
Mitsubishi Motors Corp., which plunged into the red in the previous fiscal year, managed to return to the black with consolidated net profits of 5.67 billion yen in 1998, but only after selling off a parcel of land at its Maruko plant in Tokyo for 32 billion yen.
Operating income improved from 3.2 billion yen the previous year to 55.9 billion yen, thanks largely to cost-cutting efforts to redesign auto parts and improved performances in North America and Europe, MMC officials said.