JFE Holdings Estimates the Ordinary Profit as 500 Billion yen

JFE Holdings estimates the ordinary profit as 500 billion yen and operating profit as 510 billion yen in the consolidated settlement in fiscal 2005, the year that ends in March 2006. While the operating profit will be decreasing 10 billion yen from the previous estimate mainly due to steel production decreases, the ordinary profit will be flat because of exchange gain, unit price revision, manufacture of high-quality steel products, and cost reduction, etc. JFE’s average steel product price in fiscal 2006 is likely to increase to 77,000 yen from 61,700 yen in the previous term mainly thanks to the price revision following the steel market price increase and price revision for strings in the first half of the fiscal year despite weak trends of the market for distributors in the second half. Furthermore, JFE narrowed the exports of all-purpose steel sheets considerably. As a result, composition of steel products was improved. JFE’s crude steel production in fiscal 2006 is likely to decrease about 1 million tonnes from the previous fiscal year due to its production decreases of all-purpose steel products for export and steel sheets for domestic use. So the steel product shipment in the fiscal year is likely to decrease to 24.44 million tonnes from 25.73 million tonnes in the previous fiscal year. According to the initial plan, crude steel shipment would exceed 29 million tonnes. The decreased production will fall by 70 billion yen or more.