(Recasts, adds Fukui quote, details)
By Chang-Ran Kim
TOKYO, April 22 (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co, Japan's second-biggest automaker, on Tuesday named senior managing director Takeo Fukui as its new president, replacing Hiroyuki Yoshino in a regular reshuffle at the top.
Yoshino's resignation had been rumoured for some time since he has been at the helm for well over four years, the typical tenure for a president at Honda.
Fukui, 58, currently heads Honda's research and development unit, which often provides the president.
"I want to solidify Honda's global network by bringing our operations in North America, China and Asia fully up to speed," Fukui told a news conference.
Analysts said Fukui's appointment was unlikely to herald and major change in Honda's strategy.
"I doubt if we are going to see any big changes at Honda," said HSBC Securities analyst Christopher Richter, noting that Fukui had been heavily involved in shaping Honda's current operations.
"The main challenge for Fukui is guiding Honda while there are concerns about the U.S. market," he said.
Asked about the timing of the handover, Yoshino, 63, said he wanted discussions to begin soon over Honda's medium-term plans beyond 2005 and that he believed the next president should be involved from the start.
"There's still a lot left to be done -- too much to mention," Yoshino, a 40-year veteran at Honda, told a news conference.
But he said he was confident in Fukui's ability, citing his broad experience both at home and abroad.
Fukui served as president of the company's U.S. production unit, Honda of America Manufacturing Inc, between 1996 and 1998.
He has also worked in the area of motorcycle racing, devoting almost a decade to Honda's racing success, including the maker's first 500 cc class world championship in 1983.
"He's tough and decisive," said Yoshino, who will remain at Honda as director and adviser.
Analysts said they would be watching in particular to see what the new president does about the company's under-performing domestic operations.
Honda has been zooming past its rivals in the key U.S. market but its sales in Japan are down almost nine percent so far this year, compared with strong growth at other top car makers.
Fears are growing that a slow recovery in the U.S. economy could begin to take its toll even on Honda, which has so far been immune to the market's downturn thanks to a reputation for building reliable cars.
Still, analysts expect it to post a rise of around four percent in operating profit for the just-ended fiscal year when it announced its results on Friday.
Fukui will have to work hard to measure up to his predecessor.
Under Yoshino's leadership, Honda launched a revolutionary manufacturing system that enables more flexibility and which has become a key part of its strategy in competing against bigger rivals.
The automaker has also made leaps in environmental technology, including the introduction of two gas-electric hybrid vehicles and the world's first marketable fuel-cell vehicle.
The change at the helm will take effect after ratification by the board following a shareholders' meeting in late June.
Honda's shares ended down 1.82 percent at 3,780 yen, slightly better than the benchmark Nikkei average .
(Additional reporting by David McMahon, Yuko Inoue)