中部鋼鈑 has revised down its earnings forecast for the current fiscal year and now expects full-year operating profit to decline. First-half sales are projected at ¥29.5 billion, with an operating loss of ¥800 million.
中部鋼鈑, a heavy steel plate specialist, announced on 17 September that it had revised down its earnings forecasts for the first half and full year ending March 2027, with its full-year plan for higher operating profit now expected to turn into a year-on-year decline. The company has a strong foothold in the Chukyo region.
First-half sales are projected at ¥29.5 billion, compared with the initial plan of ¥30.4 billion, while the operating loss is expected to be ¥800 million, versus ¥100 million in the original forecast. The ordinary loss is projected at ¥700 million, compared with ¥200 million, and the net loss at ¥500 million, compared with ¥100 million. Heavy plate, which regained market share following an accident involving a new electric furnace, is performing well, but shipments have struggled to grow because of delays in operations.
The company said operating profit was weighed down by higher raw-material inventory costs and rising materials costs, while delays in raising product prices also squeezed margins. It expects to post an operating loss in the second quarter, following the first-quarter loss, and does not anticipate a return to profitability from the previous fiscal year.
Operating profit was ¥560 million in the previous fiscal year, but the outlook for full-year profitability has now fallen apart, with the forecast revised down to a year-on-year decline. Attention will focus on quarterly trends ahead and the factors driving a recovery.