Japanese steelmaker Kobe Steel Ltd (Kobe) has issued its financial results for the fiscal year 2015-16 ended March 31.
For the given period, Kobe Steel has reported a net loss of JPY 21.55 billion ($199.3 million), compared to a net profit of JPY 86.5 billion recorded in the previous fiscal year. The company's consolidated net sales revenues for the whole financial year amounted to JPY 1.82 trillion ($16.85 billion), down 3.4 percent year on year, owing to a decline in steel sales price due to lower prices of primary raw materials.
Kobe Steel produced 7.48 million mt of crude steel in the year in question, remaining stable year on year. Kobe's steel product sales volume in the given period decreased by 0.8 percent to six million mt, compared to the financial year 2014-15, as demand was firm in the shipbuilding sector, but domestic new car sales continued to fall below the levels of the previous year.
According to Kobe Steel, automotive demand is recovering and demand in shipbuilding and other sectors will generally be firm. However, it will take time to resolve the oversupply of steel in the Asian region. In addition, the slowdown of China’s economy, sluggish energy-related demand in emerging countries and resource-rich countries against the backdrop of low crude oil prices and economic stagnation are a concern. Under this outlook, taking uncertain factors into consideration including the sales volume of steel products, Kobe Steel forecasts net sales of about JPY 1.75 trillion ($16.17 billion) and net income of about JPY 20 billion ($184.8 million) in the fiscal year 2016-17.