Nissan Motor Company projected a 22.6 per cent rise in net income for its current business year as the weakening yen allows Japanese carmakers to cash in overseas profits at more favourable rates.

But Carlos Ghosn, who heads both the Japanese firm and France's Renault, said that while Nissan's annual global retail sales volumes will reach a record, he expects the European market to face another tough year.

"I think 2013 is going to be tough and I don't foresee any growth in Europe probably before the end of (Nissan's) mid-term plan, which means not before 2016, or even later," Ghosn said.

"We think the European consumer lacks of confidence. The European consumer is confused, he doesn't know when Europe is going to get out of this crisis and until he sees or understands what's going on in Europe, I don't think (he's) going to buy cars," he said.

Nissan, Japan's second biggest carmaker by sales volume, expects global retail sales of 5.3 million vehicles in the business year that ends in March 2014, up from 4.9m last year, when it eked out a 1.4pc year-on-year rise.

 In January-March, Nissan net profit's grew 46.1pc to 110 billion yen ($1.11 billion), above an average forecast of 100.8 billion yen net profit made by five analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.