A tie-up would help them better compete against Tesla and other electric vehicle makers, the Nikkei, the Financial Times and others said.
A Honda spokesman said Wednesday that a potential merger was already among the possibilities being discussed.
Nissan said: “The content of the report is not something that has been announced by either companies. As announced in March of this year, Honda and Nissan are exploring various possibilities for future collaboration, leveraging each other’s strengths.
Nissan in particular has been struggling, announcing 9,000 job cuts last month and slashing its annual sales forecast.
Honda and Nissan are looking to operate under a single holding company and will soon sign a memorandum of understanding for the new entity, the Nikkei and other outlets said, citing people familiar with the matter.
Honda and Nissan earlier issued almost identical statements in response, saying the details in the report had not been announced by either side.
Honda is Japan’s number two automaker and Nissan is number three, with their rival Toyota in pole position.
Honda announced plans in May to double investment in electric vehicles to $65 billion by 2030, part of its ambitious target set three years ago of achieving 100 percent EV sales by 2040.
It said in March that 16 of the 30 new models it plans to launch over the next three years would be “electrified”.
At the same time, however, there has been a slowdown in the EV market on the back of consumer concern about high prices, reliability, range and a lack of charging points.
Just 1.7 percent of cars sold in Japan in 2022 were electric -- compared with 15 percent in western Europe and 5.3 percent in the United States.
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