The PSA Research Round-Up for Week to 12 December 2025

Weekly Comment Summary
Has Japanese Manufacturing Got its Mojo Back?
Next week sees the publication of the Q4 Tankan. Business confidence among Japanese manufacturers has been improving.
Pelham Smithers considers whether the report might show an acceleration of that trend.

PSA Weekly Contents at a Glance
Reports / Flash Notes Summaries
1. The Economics and Implications of the Semiconductor, Data and AI Feedback Loop
2. Mitsubishi Electric (6503 JT) – Doubling OP

Company / Sector / Thematic Comments
Technology: Consumer Electronics, Gaming
1. Video Games Round-up
2. Switch 2 Discounts Online Finally Drying Up
3. What Can (and Can’t) Square Enix’s Management Do to Improve the Firm’s Performance?
4. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Technology: Industrial Electronics / Components / Semis & SPE / Precision
5. DDR5 Spot Prices Ease
6. Nidec Cooperates with Google on Data Centre Cooling Solution
7. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Chemicals / Materials
8. Asahi Kasei Benefits from High AI Chip Production
9. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Autos / New Mobility
10. Asia Motorcycle ICE Bans Pose Risk to Honda
11. Nissan and Wayve Sign Collaboration Agreement
12. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Capital Goods / Machinery / Auto Parts
13. Mitsubishi Electric Hits Yet Another New Listing High
14. SEI Hits New Listing High
15. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Internet / eCommerce
16. Anycolor Revises FY26 Guidance Up Again
17. Timee’s FY25 Results Miss
Enterprise Software / IT Services
18. Nomura and B Dash to Launch Digital Token VC Fund to Tap Wealthy Individual Investors
19. Visional FY26 Q1 OP Cruises Past Consensus Estimates
20. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
FinTech
21. FinTech News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Pharma / Healthcare
22. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Small- / Mid-Cap Insights
23. Treasure Factory: Nov KPIs Solid
24. Park24 FY25 Q4 Preview
Macro / Market / Strategy / Misc.
25. Japan’s 2025 Q3 GDP Shrinks; Rate Hikes Still Expected
26. Nov PPI Data for Japan and China
27. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye

List of Recently Published PSA Notes & Reports
Important Disclosure Statement from Pelham Smithers Associates Limited



PSA in the Press
 Pelham Smithers features in the following articles:
Nintendo Sheds $14 Billion Value After Chip Squeeze Fears Grow – Bloomberg [10 Dec]
Excerpt: “The rise in NAND prices is starting to really impact express SD card prices. A 256GB express SD card costs $89.99 on Amazon. This is effectively a cost that Nintendo has passed on to the gamer,” said Pelham Smithers of Pelham Smithers Associates. He sees these additional storage cards as essential because of the limited storage built into the Switch 2, with third-party games from the likes of Electronic Arts Inc. effectively costing $20 more because of the storage need.
“One of the surprises around Black Friday was seeing the Nintendo Switch 2 + Mario Kart World bundle being offered online at a $50 discount – which essentially meant that you got the Mario Kart game for free,” Smithers said. “You wouldn’t expect it to be discounted this close to the holiday season.”
Nintendo Loses Billions in Market Value Amid Worries Over Surging Chip Costs – Dow Jones Newswires [12 Dec]
Excerpt: Prices of memory chips have been on the rise due to the artificial-intelligence boom, which has been drawing down existing supplies. “That is making life difficult for gaming console companies”, said Pelham Smithers, head of U.K.-based Japanese equity research firm Pelham Smithers Associates.
“The fact that the Switch 2 was released recently puts Nintendo at a disadvantage compared with peers that have a more established installation base, preventing it from hiking prices to cover memory costs”, said Smithers.
He expects prices for dynamic random-access memory – a type of semiconductor--to weigh on the Japanese company significantly in the second half of 2026.
“The issue with Nintendo isn't necessarily whether it can handle what is happening now. The problem is what happens if it gets worse," said Smithers.
 Autos / New Mobility analyst Julie Boote features in the following articles:
How Toyota Bucked the Trend in China – Bloomberg [10 Dec]
Excerpt: From 2023, it also began offering heavy discounts on some models. Julie Boote, an automotive analyst at London-based research firm Pelham Smithers Associates, told me this strategy boosted shipments but took a toll on the bottom line. During the 2021 fiscal year, she estimates that profits from Toyota’s joint ventures as well as sales of its vehicles imported from Japan stood at 525 billion yen ($3.4 billion). Three years later, the figure nearly halved to 290 billion yen.
Toyota’s turnaround, without a massive restructuring or GM-style $5 billion write-down, seems to be working. Boote believes that profits from the China operations will grow 14% compared to last year. And despite continued rumblings between Beijing and Tokyo over Taiwan, there have been no calls for any boycotts of Japanese products.


Nissan’s Comeback Bid: Japan’s Fallen Giant Eyes Revival – Investor’s Chronicle [8 Dec]
Excerpt: “My main concern for Nissan is on the sales side, because that’s not an easy fix,” said Julie Boote, an analyst at Pelham Smithers. It is relatively easy for a determined management to cut costs, but building the cars that people want to buy will be more challenging, she added, while noting that Nissan’s product line-up has lacked attractive battery electric vehicle [BEV] models. And the other, probably even worse, problem is that they haven’t had a hybrid model for sale,” Boote said.

PSA Company Visits, Tours and Interviews
Presentations at: Teijin (3401 JT), Fujifilm Holdings (4901 JT), Maxell (6810 JT), Resonac (4004 JT)
Visited: Kyoritsu Maintenance (9616 JT), Asahi Kasei (3407 JT)