Deterioration of the Semiconductor Business Due to the Economic Slowdown in China and Asia

「In this business, against a backdrop of strong capital investment related to AI and data centers, demand recovery became pronounced across all categories, including the core power modules, particularly for inverter applications, as well as discrete devices and chips, resulting in a substantial increase in revenue. Total net sales for the segment were ¥3,865 million, up 29.4% year on year.」

「顧客の在庫調整がほぼ収束し、販売はいずれのカテゴリーでも伸長」

「Sales of discretes and chips increased. However, although signs of a recovery in demand for the core power module business emerged toward the end of the fiscal year, revenue declined over the full year as a result of prolonged customer inventory adjustments and slower growth in the Chinese market.」

「Chip sales increased substantially year on year, while revenue from the core power module business declined year on year, mainly in general-purpose inverter applications.」

「As customer inventory adjustments continued for an extended period, orders remained at low levels throughout the year and difficult conditions persisted, resulting in a substantial decline in revenue.」

「The business remained in a difficult situation as the inventory adjustments of customers, which began in the previous consolidated fiscal year, continued for an extended period. Demand for power modules declined, particularly for general-purpose inverters, air conditioners and FA servos, while revenue declined across all product groups in power discretes, including white goods and heated toilet seats.」

「By region, China remained sluggish throughout the year, while revenue in Southeast Asia increased, partly because changes in distribution channels led to higher volumes of wafers and chips. Revenue in Japan declined in the second half.」

「However, revenue from power discretes declined both in Japan and overseas, including sales for heated toilet seats, due to worsening conditions in China’s real estate market.」

「By region, revenue from China, the main market, decreased, but this was offset by revenue from other regions, resulting in higher revenue for the business as a whole.」

「In this business, revenue decreased in China, the Group's main market, but increased in Japan, Southeast Asia and Europe.」

「Sales declined in China, the Company's core market, as the economy contracted due to the impact of COVID-19 policies and other factors, while sales in Japan, North America and Europe increased.」

「In this business, sales in China, the Group's core market, declined due to the stagnation of economic activity caused by lockdowns and other factors. In contrast, sales to Japan and Europe increased year on year.」

「In this business, orders remained solid, but sales declined in China, the Group's core market, due to the impact of lockdowns. However, sales to Japan and Europe increased year on year.」

「In this business, conditions remained strong throughout the fiscal year both overseas and in Japan, particularly in China, the Group's core market. Sales substantially exceeded the previous year across all applications, including industrial thyristor and diode modules and consumer discretes. Demand for wafers and chips also increased, resulting in a significant rise in sales.」

「In this business, orders remained strong both overseas and in Japan, particularly in China, the Group's core market. In addition to solid sales of core industrial modules, including thyristor and diode modules for general-purpose inverters, factory automation servos and welding equipment, sales of consumer discretes for electrical appliances, heated toilet seats and hot-water showers also increased. Demand for wafers and chips also grew substantially, resulting in a significant increase in sales.」

「In this business, orders for core industrial modules, including thyristor and diode modules for general-purpose inverters, factory automation servos and welding equipment, remained solid against a backdrop of strong overseas demand, particularly in Asia. Sales of consumer discretes for electrical appliances and hot-water showers also increased. In addition, demand for wafers and chips grew substantially, resulting in a significant increase in sales. Consequently, segment sales were ¥4,012 million, up 46.5% year on year.」

「The pronounced recovery in China's machine tool industry had a particularly significant impact, driving growth in demand related to factory automation.」

「In China, where recovery from the impact of COVID-19 was rapid, modules for elevators and triacs used in heated toilet seats performed solidly. In Japan, modules for factory automation equipment were recovering, but products for other applications remained below the level of the same period of the previous year.」

「In China, which recovered quickly from the impact of COVID-19, triacs used in modules for elevators and in products such as heated toilet seats remained solid. However, in Japan, the United States, Europe and Southeast Asia, results fell substantially below the same period of the previous year.」

「Compared with the previous consolidated fiscal year, when inventory adjustments continued across applications, demand generally recovered. However, restrictions on sales activities remained severe in Southeast Asia, the United States and Europe because of COVID-19, and demand from customers in those regions also slowed. As a result, sales were ¥1,376 million, down 13.4% year on year.」

「In this business, sales and orders declined in the module and industrial inverter fields, which account for a high proportion of sales, as customer inventory adjustments in Japan and overseas continued longer than expected. Sales declined further because the emergence of COVID-19 in the latter half of the fiscal year restricted sales activities in China, Southeast Asia, the United States and Europe, and temporarily halted customer production.」

「In this business, orders declined sharply because customer inventory adjustments in Japan and overseas continued longer than expected in the module and industrial inverter fields, which account for a high proportion of sales. In addition, the emergence of COVID-19 in the latter half of the fiscal year restricted sales activities in China, Southeast Asia, the United States and Europe, and customer production was temporarily suspended, resulting in a further decline in sales. Many customers were still evaluating the adoption of SiC power modules, so a full contribution to results will require more time. Consequently, sales were ¥4,475 million, down 15.1% year on year, and the segment reported a loss of ¥215 million, compared with profit of ¥480 million in the same quarter of the previous year, as lower sales and changes in the product mix reduced profitability.」

「In this business, modules for FA equipment and various industrial inverters, which had driven performance in the previous fiscal year, declined significantly as customers' inventory adjustments continued. As a result, revenue was ¥3,128 million, down 10.1% year on year, while the segment recorded a loss of ¥98 million, compared with a profit of ¥350 million in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year, due to lower profit from the revenue decline, deteriorating profitability resulting from changes in product mix and foreign exchange-rate fluctuations.」

「The economic slowdown in China has become pronounced and appears to be spreading to regions around the world.」

「In this business, modules for commercial air conditioners and factory automation equipment, which had driven the previous fiscal year, showed signs of adjustment. However, modules for various inverters and power discretes for white goods remained solid. Sales were ¥1,691 million, up 1.3% year on year, while segment profit was ¥201 million, up 85.0% year on year, reflecting higher sales as well as improved profitability from changes in the product mix and productivity improvements.」

「In this business, power modules remained solid across a wide range of applications, including commercial air conditioners and factory automation equipment. Chip sales also increased amid strong activity in the power semiconductor market. As a result, sales were ¥5,151 million, up 23.6% year on year, and segment profit was ¥482 million, compared with a loss of ¥44 million in the same period of the previous year.」

「In this business, orders for modules for commercial air conditioners were strong overseas, mainly in the Chinese market, while orders for modules for factory automation equipment were strong in Japan. Overall performance remained solid, including applications for other uses. As a result, revenue was ¥3,443 million, up 27.5% year on year, and segment profit was ¥241 million, compared with a loss of ¥37 million in the same period of the previous year.」

「In this business, the recovery trend that had continued since the second half of the previous fiscal year, centered on the Chinese market, continued. Overseas orders for modules for commercial air conditioners and domestic orders for modules for production robots, mainly for smartphones, remained solid.」

「Although the first half was sluggish partly because of market inventory adjustments, modules for overseas air conditioners and modules for domestic servo drivers remained solid from the second half onward. Sales for the 6 months of the second half increased by double digits year on year, making the recovery increasingly clear. For the full fiscal year, however, the decline in first-half sales resulted in sales of ¥5,751 million, down 5.8% year on year.」

「In China, demand for modules used in air conditioners has been recovering, while in Japan, modules for servo drivers have remained solid. As a result, quarterly sales for the 3 months of the third quarter recovered to roughly the same level as in the same period of the previous year, indicating that the decline had bottomed out. On a cumulative basis, however, the decline in sales in the first half resulted in sales of ¥4,166 million, down 10.8% year on year.」

「Although signs of recovery are evident in the Chinese market, modules for general-purpose inverters remain at low levels year on year.」

「Although the decline in demand in Asian countries, led by China, that began in the previous fiscal year appears to have bottomed out, it has not turned upward, and modules for core products remain sluggish.」

「Demand in Asian countries, led by China, which had been solid in the previous fiscal year, turned sluggish this fiscal year in both orders and sales.」