BARCELONA, Spain - Thousands of people marched through the streets of Barcelona on Thursday to protest plans by Japanese automaker Nissan to cut 1,680 jobs at its plant in the northeastern Spanish port city in response to falling demand around the world.

Unions said around 10,000 people, including workers from other area auto makers and parts suppliers, took part in the noisy demonstration but police put the figure at around 5,500.

The demonstrators called on the socialist government of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero to intervene and prevent Nissan from going ahead with the job cuts which Nissan announced on October 13.

"It is time for the government to defend the interests of the majority of citizens and workers and not just the interests of banks and big multinationals," said the head of the firm's workers' committee in Spain, Javier Donate.

Nissan, Japan's third-largest automaker, said it would stop production for one week, and shorten hours for eight weeks, at the Barcelona plant to whittle down output of the Pathfinder, Navara 4X4s and Primastar van.

It also plans to cut production in Japan and in Britain.

Nissan currently employs 6,100 people in Spain.

The automaker's sales in the United States plunged 34 percent in September from a year earlier to 59,565 vehicles.