Aug 02 (Nikkei) - One in four Japanese companies reported record-breaking profit for the quarter ended in June, marking a strong start to a fiscal year fraught with trade concerns.
Of 589 nonfinancial companies that had submitted quarterly earnings by Wednesday, profit went up at 55%. Combined net profit climbed 5%, up for an eighth straight quarter.
These figures follow global trends. U.S. corporations lifted quarterly profits by 23%, data from Thomson Reuters shows. Profit at European businesses surged 9%. Corporate tax cuts in the U.S. helped prop up earnings, defying earlier concerns of a global economic slowdown.
In Japan, the semiconductor and electronics sectors were big winners, particularly companies with large market shares. Murata Manufacturing is seeing demand rise for ceramic capacitors for automobiles. Sony's brisk gaming and music businesses helped its net profit soar 180% to an all-time high.
Organizational restructuring following the 2008 global financial crisis had a hand as well. Hitachi, which sold off peripheral segments like finance and logistics, scored its first record profit in eight years. It enjoyed its highest-ever operating margin of nearly 7%.
