CAR manufacturer Nissan has announced the transfer of its purchasing operations from Sunderland in a move which will affect 59 jobs.

Nissan plans to move vehicle part purchasing to its European technical centre research and development base in Cranfield, Oxfordshire.

The move is part of a global strategy which the company hopes will align design, development and purchasing and will also see workers moving from Nissan operations in France and Spain.

Eighty purchasing positions in all will be based at Cranfield from next year.

A spokesman for Nissan said the affected members of staff were told on Wednesday about the transfer of operations.

He said they would be offered the opportunity to move to Cranfield, but would not comment on whether there would be any redundancies.

The spokesman said: "It is far to early to speculate what will happen to those who do not wish to move.

"We see this as a great opportunity. We want our purchasing department to be involved in a much earlier stage at new model development and it makes sense to have these functions geographically in the same place."

Mel Barros, of trade union Amicus, said further talks were planned.

He said: "We have to ask after 15 or 16 years why take this decision now? I am surprised and disappointed that once again, jobs are being moved out of the North-East."

Nissan employs about 4,500 staff at Sunderland, which is the centre of UK operations.