The alliance of Nissan Motor Co., Renault SA and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. lost its lead in global auto sales in the first half of 2019, coming behind Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Corp.

The three-way alliance sold a combined 5,213,673 vehicles in the January-June period, 5.9 percent less than a year earlier. The figures come as Nissan announced it is cutting 12,500 jobs, marking an end to former Chairman Carlos Ghosn's expansionary strategy.

Germany's Volkswagen, which was the world's biggest automaker by sales in the whole of 2018, sold 5,365,300 vehicles, down 2.8 percent, in the January-June period. The figure includes products sold under the Audi and Porsche brands.

Toyota and its subsidiaries, including Daihatsu Motor Co. and truck maker Hino Motors Ltd., sold a combined 5,311,806 vehicles, up 2.0 percent to set a new record for the third consecutive year.

Nissan alone sold 2,627,672 vehicles, down 7.9 percent, while France's Renault sold 1,938,579 vehicles, down 6.7 percent. Mitsubishi Motors sold 647,422 vehicles, up 5.0 percent.

Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa told a press conference last week that the job cuts, which will take place over the next three years, are "a major revision of the investments we have made in the past."

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