Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn has vowed to stay on as the car makers' chief at least until the companies return to profit.
Ghosn, who also heads Renault, joined Nissan in 1999 and had previously said he expected to stay at the companies for 10 years at most.
"If you leave now, you wouldn't be leaving - you would be deserting," he told the Reuters news agency after announcing his first annual operating loss on Tuesday.
He said he had no intention to leave of his own volition until Nissan achieved a "clear" return to profitability.
Ghosn predicted this would happen in March 2011, assuming global auto demand stayed at around 54 million vehicles, the dollar averaged 95 yen and Nissan's cost-cutting proceeds as planned.
He also ruled out trying to expand the business by forming mergers with struggling car makers, as Fiat has done with Chrysler and is trying to do with Opel.
"There are plenty of opportunities, no doubt," he said. "The question is, can you take them?
"We are focusing on our own business for the moment, on our own cash, on our own profitability, leaving the opportunities on the side. When we're back to profit, feeling the pickup and (feel) that the financial turmoil is behind us, then we may think again, but not for the moment."
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