Takata Corp. Chairman Shigehisa Takada's failure to come forward and address an air bag crisis ensnaring the world's biggest automakers risks shaking investor confidence in the 81-year-old company's prospects.
Takada plans to skip Thursday's analyst briefing in Tokyo and send in his place Chief Financial Officer Yoichiro Nomura, who also appeared at the Tokyo Stock Exchange last week to bow in apology for the company.
The last public showing by the head of the maker of air bags linked to four deaths was in June, at an annual shareholders' meeting closed to the media. Since then, his only statement was issued seven days after the U.S. urged immediate fixes to cars recalled because of Takata products.