Japan Nonfinancial Ordinary Profits Grow 19.7 Pct in July-Sept.

Tokyo, Dec. 1 (Jiji Press)–Japanese nonfinancial firms’ combined ordinary profits in July-September grew 19.7 pct from a year before to 27,538.5 billion yen, a record high for the quarter, according to a quarterly survey report released by the Finance Ministry on Monday. The figure grew for the fourth consecutive quarter since October-December 2024, driven by rising demand related to artificial intelligence and semiconductors. Manufacturers’ profits jumped 23.4 pct to 10,001.9 billion yen. The electric machinery industry posted a profit surge of 87.5 pct, backed by strong AI-related demand. The production machinery industry logged an increase of 65.9 pct, reflecting demand for semiconductor production equipment. On the other hand, transportation equipment and business-use machinery makers suffered profit decreases of 14.0 pct and 15.2 pct, respectively, partly due to the impact of higher U.S. tariffs. Nonmanufacturers’ ordinary profits rose 17.6 pct to 17,536.7 billion yen, led by the services industry, which enjoyed increases in restaurant visitors and hotel guests, as well as higher per-customer spending, and the construction industry, which saw orders for large-scale projects. Capital expenditures by nonfinancial companies totaled 13,806.3 billion yen, up by 2.9 pct, marking the third straight quarter of growth. There were moves to boost production capacity in the steel and electric machinery industries, while investments to build data centers and those related to urban development expanded in the nonmanufacturing sector. Nonfinancial sales increased 0.5 pct to 379,043.1 billion yen, a record high for July-September. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]