But it'll still be $1.7 billion this year, the company said. U.S. sales are expected to fall 12 percent in 2009 and the yen's relative strength also will hurt.

To offset the slump, Nissan Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn plans to cut fixed costs by more than 200 billion yen, or 20 percent, from last year by reducing overtime and curbing recruitment. He also intends to cut production-related costs by 5 percent by working with suppliers to reduce the number of parts it uses.