Nippon Steel reports strong figures for the first half

Nippon Steel reports strong figures for the first half

Japan's largest steelmaker Nippon Steel Corporation announced strong results for the first half (April 1-September 31) thanks to high demand from car and ship makers. Total net sales of the company increased 23 percent year on year to Yen 1.95 trillion ($16.83 billion), while net steel sales increased 25 percent to Yen 1.5 trillion ($12.95 billion) in the six months. Total operating profit of the company increased 111 percent to Yen 301.1 billion ($2.6 billion) and operating profit from steel operations accounted for Yen 282.4 billion ($2.44 billion) of it, up 116 percent year on year. The company carried out investments to expand its hot dip galvanized steel production in the first half because of the high demand towards its high-grade steel products. The company's efforts to curb costs of shipping and processing to offset high raw material prices also contributed to the good results. The company expects the high demand –especially for its high grade products- to continue in the second half of the fiscal year.