Nissan CEO scrutinised on salary

Yokohama: Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn fielded some tough questions from shareholders about his 982 million yen (Dh44.51 million, $12.12 million) paycheque Wednesday, but won approval with no problems for another two-year stint as head of the Japanese automaker. Ghosn, who is also head of Nissan Motor Co's alliance partner Renault SA of France, told an annual shareholders meeting that his pay was based on global standards. He said the average compensation for comparable auto industry chief executives is $15.3 million. "Nissan is a Japanese company with global management," he said at a hotel in Yokohama. Brazilian-born Ghosn, who has French citizenship, noted that talented multicultural management could easily find jobs elsewhere, and that rivals were looking to recruit from Nissan's ranks. Ghosn came from Ren-ault to steer a recovery at near-bankrupt Nissan in 1999 and oversaw painful cost cuts that have now put Japan's No 2 automaker on a solid growth track. It is targeting an 8 per cent share of the global auto market under a six-year strategy announced last week. From / Gulf News