Toshiba reported record net profit of 1.9673 trillion yen (about $12.5 billion) for fiscal 2025, a sevenfold jump driven by gains from selling its stake in Kioxia and a structural surge in transmission and HDD demand from AI data centers. Nearly two years after the JIP-led privatization, what has Japan's biggest private-equity restructuring actually changed? We compare it with Blackstone's Hilton success and the cautionary tale of Toys R Us.
Japan's three megabanks—MUFG, SMFG, and Mizuho—posted a combined net profit of 5.26 trillion yen ($33B) for the fiscal year ended March 2026, breaking the 5-trillion-yen barrier for the first time. We unpack how BOJ rate hikes drove the surge, how the numbers compare to JPMorgan and HSBC, and what Japan's monetary normalization means for global markets.
Kioxia forecast a 48-fold jump in Q1 net profit to 869 billion yen ($5.5 billion), making the Japanese NAND maker Japan's single-largest AI beneficiary on a quarterly basis after Toyota. We unpack the US ADS listing plan, the supercycle reshaping NAND prices, the HBM gap with Samsung and SK Hynix, and what it all means for Japan's broader semiconductor revival.
Terra Drone, ranked #1 globally among industrial drone service companies, has solo-won a roughly $2.6M contract for pipeline security surveillance in eastern Saudi Arabia. We unpack how Japan's drone champion is pivoting from inspection into AI-driven security patrols—and how it's threading the needle between Skydio's NDAA-compliant U.S. push and DJI's collapsing U.S. market share.
A Hokkaido natto maker in Ebetsu, Hamanasu Foods, has grown its exports 60-fold in 8 years — almost entirely to China, where Beijing supermarkets stock Japanese-labeled 4-pack sets dominating 80% of shelf space. Meanwhile back home, Mizkan paused four natto products in May 2026 due to Middle East tensions disrupting packaging supplies. Plus: the science of Bacillus subtilis, where to buy natto abroad.
Rohm posted a record 158.4 billion yen ($1 billion) net loss for fiscal 2026 after writing down 193.6 billion yen ($1.23B) on SiC power semiconductor assets. CEO Katsumi Azuma called it 'clearing out the pus'—a stark admission that Japan's biggest SiC bet was mistimed. With Wolfspeed in Chapter 11 and Chinese rivals slashing wafer prices to a third, the global silicon carbide gold rush has hit its reset moment.
Honda reported a ¥423.9 billion ($2.7B) net loss for FY2026 — its first since listing in 1957 — alongside ¥1.58 trillion ($10B) in EV-related write-offs. The carmaker unveiled a turnaround plan the same day: 15 new hybrids by 2029, ¥1.4 trillion ($8.9B) operating profit target by FY2029, and a sharp comparison emerges with Toyota's multi-pathway bet, Tesla's pure-EV scale, BYD's slowdown, and Hyundai's quiet rise.
Capcom announced FY2026 results with record net sales of 195.3 billion yen and operating profit of 75.3 billion yen, marking nine consecutive years of record profits across all earnings categories and eleven straight years of 10%-plus operating profit growth. Resident Evil Requiem sold 6.91 million units at series-fastest pace, while total annual game sales hit a record 59.07 million units. The dual-engine strategy of new releases plus catalog repeat sales is working remarkably well.
SoftBank Group has posted a record 5 trillion yen ($32 billion) net profit for the fiscal year ended March 2026, becoming the first Japanese company to ever cross the 5 trillion yen line. We unpack the 6.7 trillion yen OpenAI windfall, the Vision Fund comeback, the role of Arm as collateral, and how the figure stacks up against US Big Tech.
Japan's ruling LDP is pushing to build a dedicated rare earth mining vessel for ~100 billion yen ($640M) at Minamitorishima. Here's why JAMSTEC's Chikyu isn't enough, the 2028 commercialization roadmap, and how Japan's strategy compares with US and EU efforts.
Calbee is switching 14 of its flagship snacks — including Potato Chips Lightly Salted, Consomme Punch, and Kappa Ebisen shrimp chips — to monochrome 'petroleum-saving packages' from May 25. The cause: ink shortages triggered by the Hormuz Strait crisis. A symbolic case of geopolitical risk reaching Japan's shelves, compared with parallel moves at Lindt, Lamb Weston and Smithfield Foods.
