MITSUBISHI Motors Corp, the Japanese maker of Lancer sedans, will revise its earnings forecast for the year ending March 31 as the global recession saps car demand and a stronger yen squeezes profits.

The auto maker will review forecasts based on sales performance in December and the effects of some cost-cutting measures that are in place now, spokesman Fumio Nishizaki told Bloomberg News by phone yesterday. The revision will be made by the time the firm announces its third-quarter results, usually around the end of January.

The car maker will join Toyota Motor Corp and Honda Motor Co, Japan's two largest auto makers, in changing profit goals as auto sales plummet worldwide. The yen's 23-percent gain against the United States dollar this year also cuts the repatriated value of Japanese companies' overseas sales.

Tokyo-based Mitsubishi Motors in October predicted net income to fall 42 percent to 20 billion yen (US$220 million) for the year. The plan to revise the earnings forecasts was reported by the Nikkan Kogyo newspaper, which cited an interview with President Osamu Masuko.

Mitsubishi Motors was unchanged at 121 yen at the close of trading in Tokyo yesterday. The shares have declined 36 percent this year.