TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Mitsubishi Motors Corp. is considering not joining the planned merger between Nissan Motor Co. and Honda Motor Co. and instead focusing on strengthening cooperation with the two larger firms, a source close to the matter said Friday.

The development reflects Mitsubishi Motors' fears of losing management control if it joins the Nissan-Honda merger under a holding company. The Tokyo-based firm is a Nissan partner and has strength in Southeastern Asian markets such as Indonesia and the Philippines.

Doubts over the synergistic effect of a merger between Honda, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors persist, at a time when competitiveness in the auto industry shifts toward development of electric vehicles and software, areas where all three automakers struggle.

"At this stage, we are considering various possibilities, and we have not decided on a (specific) direction," the Tokyo-based automaker said in a statement Friday.

President Takao Kato told reporters in Tokyo, "Nothing has been decided."

Honda and Nissan, Japan's second- and third-largest carmakers by volume, announced late last year they would launch talks to merge under a holding company in 2026, which would create the world's third-largest auto group by volume to compete with U.S. and Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers.

They said at the time that Mitsubishi Motors would decide by the end of January whether to join the merger.

Combined sales of Honda, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors topped 8 million vehicles in 2023, compared with 11.23 million vehicles at Toyota Motor Corp.'s group and 9.24 million at Volkswagen AG.

Honda and Nissan aim to conclude negotiations in June 2025. Each company would continue operating under its own brand within the holding company, which would be listed in August 2026.

While the merger involving Mitsubishi Motors would have helped gain leverage against Chinese rivals in Southeast Asia, among other merits, some inside Honda and Mitsubishi Motors have voiced wariness about Nissan's progress of its business turnaround, a condition Honda has set to realize the merger.

Nissan in November said it will cut 9,000 jobs worldwide and reduce its global production capacity by 20 percent as it reported a more than 90 percent drop in net profit in the April-September period.