Nippon Steel, the third-largest steel producer globally, anticipates steady growth in the American market due to import tariffs and sustained demand. This growth could raise profits for its subsidiary, US Steel, above current projections, according to Reuters, citing Nippon Steel’s deputy CEO Takahiro Mori (agronews.ua).
Last year, Nippon Steel completed the acquisition of US Steel for $14.9 billion after 18 months of intense political and regulatory battles in Washington. Currently, around 100 Japanese experts are working on 260 initiatives to improve operational efficiency, implementing their proprietary technology to enhance production effectiveness.
Although integration is already yielding positive results, Nippon Steel’s leadership remains unsatisfied with the pace of internal transformation. “We see improvements, but we are not yet satisfied,” Mori said in an interview with Nikkei. Despite this, financial expectations for the American market remain high. According to Mori, US Steel is expected to earn over 100 billion yen ($624 million) this year, and a positive market trend up to 2027 indicates additional growth potential.
In the long term, it’s anticipated that the annual profit of the subsidiary will range between 300-400 billion yen. Current conditions in the U.S. are considered highly favorable: hot-rolled steel sheet prices exceed $1200/ton, more than double the price in Asia. To maximize this market opportunity, US Steel resumed operation of a idled blast furnace in Illinois, which is now running at full capacity.
The board of directors of US Steel has already approved about a third of the 11-billion-dollar investment package promised by Nippon Steel by 2028. It’s expected that by 2035, the annual profit from these investments will reach $3 billion. However, the cost of modernizing the Mon Valley Works plant in Pennsylvania may increase due to inflation, additional equipment requirements, and environmental assessments.
The company is also still evaluating locations for building new steelmaking facilities in the U.S. Major risks for the business include inflationary pressure on costs and labor shortages caused by competition among large projects. However, Mori emphasized that the U.S. government has not interfered with the company’s management decisions since the deal was closed.
Overall, Nippon Steel plans to continue its active international expansion, focusing on markets in the U.S., India, Thailand, and Europe. The strategic goal of the Japanese giant is to increase foreign profits to over 500 billion yen by 2030, nearly five times the 2025 financial year’s figures. According to Mori, global structural changes require businesses operating abroad to build closer relations with politicians and align their investments with national industrial policies of countries.
Consumption of metal products in Ukraine increased by 2.2% from January to May.
Tags: Nippon Steel, US Steel, Investments in steelmaking capacity, Inflationary pressure, Labor competition, International expansion, Modernization of Mon Valley Works, U.S. steel market, Strategic goals of Nippon Steel, Prices for hot-rolled steel sheet
📌 Джерело: Nippon Steel прогнозує стабільне зростання ринку США