Nippon Steel raises profit forecast on higher margins

Japan's Nippon Steel Corp raised its full-year net profit forecast by 12 per cent on Tuesday, citing higher margins through price increases and lower costs after a restructuring and capacity cuts.

Net profit in its financial year to March 31 is now projected at a record 670 billion yen ($4.6 billion), up from its August guidance of 600 billion yen and above a mean forecast of 483 billion yen among 10 analysts polled by Refinitiv.

"This is the effect of our efforts over the past two years to reinforce margins," Executive Vice President Takahiro Mori told a news conference, referring to price increases for key customers such as automakers.

"Fixed costs have been significantly reduced through structural reforms."

The world's fourth-biggest steelmaker said in 2021 that it would reduce capacity by a further 10 per cent in addition to a 10 per cent cut flagged a year earlier, citing declining domestic demand and intensifying competition from China.