Nippon Steel 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, last December.
The steelmaker now projects a consolidated net loss of ¥70 billion, compared with its previous forecast for a loss of ¥60 billion, as consequences of the fire, including reduced shipments, hit its bottom line by ¥40 billion.
The company kept the projected contribution by United States Steel 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 news 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 in April-December 2025 from a profit of ¥362 billion 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.
