Nippon Steel Projects Larger Full-Year Loss

Tokyo, Feb. 6 (Jiji Press)–Nippon Steel Corp. said Thursday that it projects a larger net loss than previously expected for the fiscal year through next month due partly to a fire that broke out at a plant in Muroran, Hokkaido, northernmost Japan, last December. The Japanese steelmaker now projects a consolidated net loss of 70 billion yen, compared with its previous forecast for a loss of 60 billion yen, as consequences of the fire, including reduced shipments, hit its bottom line by 40 billion yen. The company kept the projected contribution by United States Steel Corp. to its earnings at zero because of the U.S. steelmaker’s sluggish financial performance. Takahiko Iwai, senior managing executive officer at Nippon Steel, said at a press conference that, while U.S. steel prices are picking up, severe weather there is affecting parts supply. “We didn’t project earnings contributions due to high uncertainty,” Iwai said of the U.S. company that Nippon Steel acquired last June. Nippon Steel swung to a net loss of 45 billion yen in April-December 2025 from a profit of 362 billion yen a year before. The red ink primarily reflected significant restructuring losses as Nippon Steel dissolved a joint venture in the United States with a major European steelmaker in connection with the acquisition of U.S. Steel. Lower international steel prices amid Chinese overproduction also weighed on Nippon Steel’s earnings. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]