Given how many smartphones are sold every year, it’s actually quite a lucrative business, so it’s not hard to see why even Canon wants in on the action. The company has recently confirmed that they too will start selling their CMOS sensors to third-party companies who might need to use their technology.

According to Canon, “Canon has been manufacturing CMOS sensors since 2000 for exclusive use in Canon products. Building on that expertise and success, Canon is now committed to starting external sales to collaborate with various industries. Canon CMOS sensors feature unique designs to meet the needs of demanding vision applications.”

TOKYO — Nissan is looking to sell some or all of its 34% stake in Mitsubishi Motors, Bloomberg News reported on Monday, citing unidentified sources, a move that would reshape a three-way alliance that includes France's Renault.

Nissan shares rose 5% on the news. Mitsubishi Motors was up 3%.

A new reports says that Subaru has "no plans" to launch its upcoming second-generation BRZ in Europe. If true, that means the 100-unit Final Edition announced earlier this year for the German market is truly the final edition for the Old World.

Furthermore, according to the UK's Autocar, which reported the news, the BRZ "will be a U.S.-only model." That would indicate that even Subaru's home market of Japan would be denied access to the lightweight sports coupe, which seems unlikely. Toyota has been very tight-lipped about its own 86 version, so it's not clear which markets the BRZ's twin would be sold in.

A Toyota hybrid on display at the Beijing Motor Show. (Reuters)

Japan's SoftBank Group has announced that it has agreed to sell leading chip designer Arm to US-based Nvidia in a deal worth up to 40 billion dollars.

SoftBank Group and its Vision Fund will sell all shares in UK-based Arm in a cash and stock deal.

Farmers in Yamanashi Prefecture, west of Tokyo, have sold vegetables at a drive-through market as many stores remain closed due to the coronavirus epidemic.

Fourteen farmers gathered at a parking lot of the municipal office building in Chuo City on Sunday. Shoppers were waiting for the makeshift market to open at 10 a.m. They bought tomatoes, turnips and other vegetables.

TOKYO/BEIJING — Nissan Motor Co's management has become convinced the struggling automaker needs to be much smaller, and a restructuring plan due out next month would likely assume a cut of 1 million cars to its annual sales target, senior company sources said.

Even before the spread of the coronavirus, Nissan's sales and profits had been slumping and it was burning through cash, forcing it to row back on an aggressive expansion plan pursued by ousted leader Carlos Ghosn. The pandemic has only piled on urgency and pressure to renewed efforts to downsize.

SoftBank Group is selling assets worth up to 4.5 trillion yen, or about 41 billion dollars. The Japanese IT giant will use the money to buy back its shares and reduce debt over the next 12 months.

Chairman and CEO Masayoshi Son says the move will strengthen the firm's balance sheet while significantly reducing debt. The coronavirus pandemic caused the group's share price to fall by half in the past month.

Toyota has announced that it will start to reproduce select spare parts for the A70 and A80 Supra through the GR Heritage Parts Project and sell them both domestically and internationally.