6 Steel Trading Companies Posted Highest Net Profits in Previous Fiscal Year; 4 Forecast Lower Profits for Current Fiscal Year

　The 9 major steel trading companies reported their consolidated financial results for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023, on March 12, and all of them posted record-high earnings, thanks to higher steel prices and a tailwind from the weaker yen, as well as business restructuring and growth investments. 6 of the 8 companies that announced net income reached record highs: Marubeni-Itochu Steel, Hanwa, Metal One, Okaya, Shinsho, and Sato Shoji. 4 of the 5 companies that disclosed full-year net income forecasts expect a decline in profits this fiscal year due to increasing uncertainties, including economic recession in China, deteriorating conditions in Russia and Ukraine, interest rate and exchange rate fluctuations, and falling overseas steel product market prices.