Pelham Smithers Associates Ltd

Founded in 2009, Pelham Smithers Associates (PSA) provides market intelligence on Asian technology, focusing in particular on Japan. The industries covered by our team of specialists are: consumer electronics, telecomms, pharmaceuticals, internet, electronic parts and materials, automotive technology, retail and capital goods. 

PSA produces both company and sector reports. The focus of PSA’s research is to identify winners and losers as new technologies impact the top and bottom lines of corporations. Critical to our research is the clear explanation of how these new technologies work and how they impact companies and industries. 

The founding partners have worked closely together for twenty years and the team has more than doubled in size since 2012. 

Julie Boote
  • Julie Boote

PSA Autos / New Mobility: Nissan and Honda: A Match Made in Heaven?

Rivals Nissan and Honda surprised markets with the announcement of a future collaboration on EVs and software. While it is still early days, the two companies seem keen to take advantage of scale and synergies in the highly competitive EV space. Given the industry’s rapid transition towards new mobility, analyst Julie Boote investigates whether a more comprehensive alliance or a merger could be possible and beneficial.

Hiroyuki Terada ... (+3)
  • Hiroyuki Terada
  • Julie Boote
  • Pelham Smithers

PSA Today 16 May: Gains, with tech up, cyclicals down as GDP disappoin...

PSA Today Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, Julie Boote and Hiroyuki Terada Tags: Credit Saison (8253 JT), Disco (6146 JT), Tokyo Electron (8035 JT), Ebara (6361 JT), Appier (4180 JT), Obayashi (1802 JT), Terumo (4543 JT), Furukawa Electric (5801 JT), JMDC (4483 JT), Recruit (6098 JT), CyberAgent (4751 JT), Keyence (6861 JT), Japan Exchange Group (8697 JT), Toyota Motor (7203 JT), Kioxia (unlisted), Honda Motor (7267JT), Ford Motor (F US), Nissan Motor (7201 JT), Park24 (4666 JT) Main P...

Nia Dokova
  • Nia Dokova

PSA Healthcare Products: Olympus (7733 JT) Cements FY23 as a Write-Off...

Olympus (7733 JT) seems to be leaning into the market’s acceptance that FY23 is a write-off, reporting yet more expenses for Q4. This review includes management’s comments on how the firm plans to achieve an earnings recovery in FY24.

Hiroyuki Terada ... (+7)
  • Hiroyuki Terada
  • Joel Scheiman
  • Julie Boote
  • Lindsay Whipp
  • Nia Dokova
  • Pelham Smithers
  • William Nestuk

PSA Today 15 May: Wild ride on earnings / Nexon stabilises / SMC / Hoy...

PSA Today Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, Julie Boote, Joel Scheiman, William Nestuk, Lindsay Whipp, Hiroyuki Terada and Nia Dokova Tags: Sony (6758 JT), Casio Computer (6952 JT), Sharp (6753 JT), Konica Minolta (4902 JT), Isetan Mitsukoshi (3099 JT), Nitori (9843 JT), ExaWizards (4259 JT), Appier (4180 JT), PKSHA Technology (3993 JT), TSMC (2330 TT), Disco (6146 JT), Advantest (6857 JT), Socionext (6526 JT), Renesas (6723 JT), Isuzu Motors (7202 JT), Nexon (3659 JT), NCSoft (036570 KS...

Hiroyuki Terada ... (+6)
  • Hiroyuki Terada
  • Joel Scheiman
  • Julie Boote
  • Lindsay Whipp
  • Pelham Smithers
  • William Nestuk

PSA Today 14 May: Good results to the fore / Sony's Q4 jump / Suzuki's...

PSA Today Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, Julie Boote, William Nestuk, Joel Scheiman, Lindsay Whipp and Hiroyuki Terada Tags: Furukawa Electric (5801 JT), Obayashi (1802 JT), ENEOS (5020 JT), Konami (9766 JT), Nintendo (7974 JT), Nexon (3659 JT), Screen Holdings (7735 JT), Socionext (6526 JT), Chugai Pharmaceutical (4519 JT), Shionogi (4507 JT), Koei Tecmo (3635 JT), Square Enix (9684 JT), SoftBank Group (9984 JT), Hitachi (6501 JT), NEC Corp (6701 JT), PKSHA (3993 JT), ExaWizards (425...

Julie Boote
  • Julie Boote

Trump Set to Pull out of Free Trade Agreement with Korea – Unfair fo...

President Trump threatens to raise pulling out of the Free Trade Agreement with Korea, KORUS, when he discusses the issue with his advisers next week. This follows complaints by Mr Trump earlier this year when he noted that American automakers struggle to sell cars in Korea, while Hyundai Motors and Kia Motors seem to be having an easy ride in the US.In our view, there is little to complain about, if you look at the trade data and sales developments in detail: Both countries now offer free entry...

Julie Boote
  • Julie Boote

PSA Autos: Time to Panic about China EV Sales Quota? – Automakers Ho...

The German newspaper the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) reported on Tuesday August 29th that China’s regulators will soon release some final, softened rules regarding 2018 sales quotas for electric vehicles (EVs). The currently-known draft outlines that OEMs have to generate ‘green credits’ equivalent to 8% of their total auto sales in 2018 (10% in 2019, 12% in 2020). For instance, an automaker selling 1mil cars a year in China would need to generate 80,000 credits; credit points are highe...

Pelham Smithers
  • Pelham Smithers

PSA Global Strategy: Have We Passed Peak FANG?

The stock market loves a collective. Ever since the "Nifty 50" in the early '70s, groups of winners have been bandied together. In the 1990s, we had the "dot coms", stocks that were supposedly winners from Web 1.0. As that was going on, Japan had its own "Nifty 50" of blue chip export names. In the 2000s, we had the Four Horsemen, a group that has morphed, a decade later, into FANG. One of the first signs of difficulty with a collective is when the market can't decide on the components. With a l...

Joel Scheiman
  • Joel Scheiman

Fujifilm Holdings (4901) FY17 Q1 Results Meeting – Cameras Push Earn...

Key Points Fujifilm explained at its earnings meeting that the Imaging and Information Segments combined beat its guidance thanks to strong momentum for cameras but made no changes to its guidance. Documents (Fuji Xerox) again appeared to disappoint, although management noted that Q1 results were only slightly below internal targets. Management appears confident that conditions will improve by H2, boosted in part by its supply of more than ten new office product models this year to the newly...

Pelham Smithers
  • Pelham Smithers

PSA Today Aug 14th: Strong Yen/June GDP +1.0% QoQ, +4.0% Annualized/To...

Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, William Nestuk and Thao Nguyen Nikkei ¥19,537.10 (-¥192.64 / -0.98%); Topix ¥1,599.06 (-¥18.19 / -1.12%); ¥/$109.56Tags: Daifuku (6383), Yaskawa (6506), Toshiba (6502), Western Digital (WDC US), SK Hynix (000660 KS), Hon Hai (2317 TT), Sony (6758), Recruit Holdings (6098), Trend Micro (4704), istyle (3660), Avex (7860), Ferrotec (6890)Strong yen sends market lower after holidayNew highs for Yaskawa and Daifuku – again June GDP up 1.0% QoQ, 4.0% annual...

Hiroyuki Terada ... (+3)
  • Hiroyuki Terada
  • Julie Boote
  • Pelham Smithers

PSA Today 16 May: Gains, with tech up, cyclicals down as GDP disappoin...

PSA Today Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, Julie Boote and Hiroyuki Terada Tags: Credit Saison (8253 JT), Disco (6146 JT), Tokyo Electron (8035 JT), Ebara (6361 JT), Appier (4180 JT), Obayashi (1802 JT), Terumo (4543 JT), Furukawa Electric (5801 JT), JMDC (4483 JT), Recruit (6098 JT), CyberAgent (4751 JT), Keyence (6861 JT), Japan Exchange Group (8697 JT), Toyota Motor (7203 JT), Kioxia (unlisted), Honda Motor (7267JT), Ford Motor (F US), Nissan Motor (7201 JT), Park24 (4666 JT) Main P...

Hiroyuki Terada ... (+7)
  • Hiroyuki Terada
  • Joel Scheiman
  • Julie Boote
  • Lindsay Whipp
  • Nia Dokova
  • Pelham Smithers
  • William Nestuk

PSA Today 15 May: Wild ride on earnings / Nexon stabilises / SMC / Hoy...

PSA Today Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, Julie Boote, Joel Scheiman, William Nestuk, Lindsay Whipp, Hiroyuki Terada and Nia Dokova Tags: Sony (6758 JT), Casio Computer (6952 JT), Sharp (6753 JT), Konica Minolta (4902 JT), Isetan Mitsukoshi (3099 JT), Nitori (9843 JT), ExaWizards (4259 JT), Appier (4180 JT), PKSHA Technology (3993 JT), TSMC (2330 TT), Disco (6146 JT), Advantest (6857 JT), Socionext (6526 JT), Renesas (6723 JT), Isuzu Motors (7202 JT), Nexon (3659 JT), NCSoft (036570 KS...

Hiroyuki Terada ... (+6)
  • Hiroyuki Terada
  • Joel Scheiman
  • Julie Boote
  • Lindsay Whipp
  • Pelham Smithers
  • William Nestuk

PSA Today 14 May: Good results to the fore / Sony's Q4 jump / Suzuki's...

PSA Today Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, Julie Boote, William Nestuk, Joel Scheiman, Lindsay Whipp and Hiroyuki Terada Tags: Furukawa Electric (5801 JT), Obayashi (1802 JT), ENEOS (5020 JT), Konami (9766 JT), Nintendo (7974 JT), Nexon (3659 JT), Screen Holdings (7735 JT), Socionext (6526 JT), Chugai Pharmaceutical (4519 JT), Shionogi (4507 JT), Koei Tecmo (3635 JT), Square Enix (9684 JT), SoftBank Group (9984 JT), Hitachi (6501 JT), NEC Corp (6701 JT), PKSHA (3993 JT), ExaWizards (425...

Hiroyuki Terada ... (+6)
  • Hiroyuki Terada
  • Joel Scheiman
  • Julie Boote
  • Lindsay Whipp
  • Pelham Smithers
  • William Nestuk

PSA Today 13 May: Market slip as JGBs sold off / TSMC's April revenues...

PSA Today Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, Joel Scheiman, Julie Boote, William Nestuk, Lindsay Whipp and Hiroyuki Terada Tags: Olympus (7733 JT), Toray (3402 JT), KDDI (9433 JT), Toyota Motor (7203 JT), Kyocera (6971 JT), Sony (6758 JT), Infocom (4348 JT), Teijin (3401 JT), Paramount (PARA US), TSMC (2330 TT), Nvidia (NVDA US), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD US), Square Enix (9684 JT), Konami (9766 JT), UBE Corp (4208 JT), Nissan Chemical (4021 JT), Mazda Motor (7261 JT), Daihatsu, Subaru...

Hiroyuki Terada ... (+7)
  • Hiroyuki Terada
  • Joel Scheiman
  • Julie Boote
  • Lindsay Whipp
  • Nia Dokova
  • Pelham Smithers
  • William Nestuk

The PSA Weekly Research Round up covering the Golden Week period of 30...

Weekly Comment Summary Next week sees Japan publish its 2024 Q1 GDP number. It is expected to be bad, but it’ll be interesting to see just how bad. Pelham Smithers discusses. PSA Company Visits, Tours and Interviews • Visited / Had Calls with: Nidec (6594 JT), San-A (2659 JT), Insource (6200 JT) • Conference Calls with: Koshidaka Holdings (2157 JT), Amvis (7071 JT), Moriya (6226 JT) • Presentations at: M&A Research Institutes (9552 JT), Nihon M&A Center (2127 JT), Open Up Group (2154 JT), K...

Pelham Smithers
  • Pelham Smithers

The PSA Must Read Weekly Research Round-Up (week to Aug 10)

Inside the PSA Japan Weekly Research Round-Up you have:The Weekly Comment by Pelham Smithers (available upon request):Ahead of August 14th’s expected GDP number, we discuss Japan’s inflation story. Reports / Flash Notes Published This Week: Headlines at a Glance (full reports available upon request):1. Japanese Politics – Abe’s Waning Popularity 2. Internet: Rakuten (4755) Q2 FY17 – A Decent Quarter but the Risk of Profit Volatility is High 3. Industrial Machinery: IHI (7013) – Still Engine-Driv...

Pelham Smithers
  • Pelham Smithers

PSA Today Aug 10th - Long week-end ahead/Toshiba files accounts/China'...

Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, Joel Scheiman, Julie Boote, William Nestuk and Thao Nguyen Nikkei ¥19,729.74 (-¥8.97 / -0.05%); Topix ¥1,617.25 (-¥0.65 / -0.04%); ¥/$109.95Tags: Shiseido (4911), Mitsui Mining & Smelting (5706), Japan Display (6740), W-Scope (6619), Yaskawa (6506), Daifuku (6383), Toshiba (6502), Western Digital (WDC US), SK Hynix (000660 KS), Honda (7267), Toyota (7203), Nissan (7201), Mazda (7261), Aisin Seiki (7259), Denso (6902), Koito (7276), IHI (7013), DeNA (2432)...

Pelham Smithers
  • Pelham Smithers

PSA Today Aug 9: North Korea/Olympus disenchantment/SoftBank questions...

PSA Today Aug 9: Japan Market Comment by Pelham Smithers, Julie Boote, William Nestuk and Thao Nguyen  Nikkei ¥19,738.71 (-¥257.30 / -1.32%); Topix ¥1,617.90 (-¥17.42 / -1.07%); ¥/$109.98 Tags: Olympus (7733), SoftBank (9984), Sprint (S US), T-Mobile US (TMUS US), Charter Communications (CHTR US), Dish Network (DISH US), Gumi (3903), Square Enix (9684), Honda (7267), Suzuki (7269), Yamaha Motors (7272), Harley Davidson (HOG US), Daifuku (6383), Yaskawa (6506), Nabtesco (6268), SMC (6273), IHI (7...

Pelham Smithers
  • Pelham Smithers

Japanese Politics – Abe’s Waning Popularity

In October 2012, just as Shinzo Abe was stepping up to the plate as the new leader of the then opposition party, the LDP, a relatively unknown former cabinet minister, Fumio Kishida, took over as head of the Koga faction. While factions are a feature of any political party, they were hard-coded into the LDP by the multi-seat constituency system, whereby you could run up to five candidates per district, with a view to winning up to five seats. As a consequence, while seemingly aligned in the Diet...

Julie Boote
  • Julie Boote

US Auto Sales June – The Japanese Big 3 Outperform

Key Points   US auto sales fall 3% YoY in June, with light truck sales up 4.1% YoY and passenger car sales down 13.2% YoY SAAR 16.51 mil, lowest since Apr 2005 Lower replacement demand, lower fleet sales, higher interest rates and increasing competition from cheaper second-hand cars continued to weigh on the auto market Incentives by the Japanese are higher than the Detroit 3   Toyota (7201) sales +2.1%, Honda (7267) +0.8%, Nissan (7201) +2.0% vs the Detroit 3 (which are all down)   Sub...

Julie Boote
  • Julie Boote

Honda (7267) FY17 Outlook – Relative Position to Improve under Chall...

Key Points  Honda produced strong results in FY16; partly due to the reversal of Takata (7312)-related recall expenses, but also on high production cost savings and positive volume contributions.   Honda’s FY17 guidance was below market consensus, on the back of cautious currency assumptions, expectations for sharply rising raw material prices, and deteriorating sales conditions in the US.  Although we agree that the market environment is becoming more challenging for automakers in general,...

Pelham Smithers
  • Pelham Smithers

Strategy: As the Nikkei Threatens to Break Out – What Stocks to Focu...

So far in 2017, Japanese equities have been involved in something of a tug-of-war. The oscillation in the yen / dollar has impacted on market direction; yet with each oscillation, there has been a steady creep forward; Topix is currently up 3.5% year-to-date in yen terms, and 5.0% in dollar terms.   That the market is up despite: The dollar having started the year at 117.55 and is actually down slightly as of March 10th, to 115.39, and The fact that foreigners have sold US$5bil of Japanese...

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