Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida will step down from his position on April 1, with current Chief Planning Officer Ivan Espinosa set to take up the role. Espinosa will be Nissan's fourth CEO in eight years. The leadership shakeup comes less than a month after Nissan and Honda terminated merger talks.

Ivan Espinosa succeeds Makoto Uchida after the failed merger with Honda, marking a strategic turning point for the Japanese carmaker.

Nissan on Tuesday said Ivan Espinosa, its chief planning officer, would take the helm from April 1, ending weeks of speculation over who would succeed Makoto Uchida as leader of the troubled Japanese carmaker.