The PSA Weekly Research Round Up for the week to 2 Feb 2024

Weekly Comment Summary
Is the world too bearish on China’s outlook, and if it is, how will we find out?
Pelham Smithers investigates.

PSA Company Visits, Tours and Interviews
• Visited: CUC (9158 JT), MARI (9552 JT), Insource (6200 JT)
• Conference Calls with: WingArc1st (4432 JT), Komatsu (6301 JT), HCM (6305 JT), NOK(7240 JT)
• Presentations at: Nomura Research Institute (4307 JT), TIS Inc (3626 JT), TDK (6762 JT), Sumitomo Chemical (4005 JT), Nippon Sanso Holdings (4091 JT), Hoya Corp (7741 JT), Zeon Corp (4205 JT), Tokuyama Corp (4043 JT), Sekisui Chemical (4204 JT), Maxell (6810 JT), MARI (9552 JT), AGP (9377 JT), Denso (6902 JT), Aisin (7259 JT), Toyota Industries (6201 JT), Minebea (6479 JT)

PSA Weekly Contents at a Glance
Reports / Flash Notes Summaries
1. Nidec (6594 JT) In Search of a New Growth Path – Rebooting Operations After the EV Crisis
2. M&A Research Institute (9552 JT) – Possible Near-Term Peak, but Further Acceleration Longer Term
Company / Sector / Thematic Comments
Technology: Consumer Electronics, Gaming
1. Video Games Round-Up
2. Koei Tecmo FY23 Q3 OP +39% YoY
3. Capcom FY23 Q3 OP +22% YoY
4. Canon Marketing: FY23 OP +22% YoY, Disappoints on FY24 Forecast
5. Konami FY23 Q3 OP +179% YoY, Revises Up
6. Good New for Nexon / Tencent
7. Other Consumer Elec / Gaming News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Technology: Industrial Electronics / Components / Semis & SPE / Precision
8. Canon FY23 Q4 OP +19% YoY
9. Socionext FY23 Q3 OP +48% YoY
10. NEC Corp FY23 Q3 OP -3% YoY
11. Advantest FY23 Q3 OP -35% YoY, Revises Up
12. Hitachi FY23 Q3 OP +27% YoY, Revises Up
13. Fujitsu FY23 Q3 OP -95% YoY, Revises Down
14. Shinko Electric FY23 Q3 OP -68% YoY
15. Lasertec Reports a Strong FY24 Q2; New Guidance is Below Consensus
16. TDK Hikes FY23 OP Guidance to Consensus Levels
17. Screen Holdings FY23 Q3 OP +36% YoY, Revises Up Slightly
18. Rohm FY23 Q3 OP -57% YoY, Revises Down
19. Ibiden FY23 Q3 OP -35% YoY, Revises Down
20. Hoya Reports Strong Q3, Guidance Fails to Impress
21. Murata FY23 Q3 -1% YoY
22. Other Tech-Related News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Chemicals / Materials
23. Dissolving Cross-Shareholdings – Sumitomo Chemical’s Position
24. Chemical Sector Results Round-Up
Autos
25. January Auto Sales for Japan and USA
26. Mitsubishi Motors Records OP Decline in FY23 Q3
27. Hino Reports Operating Loss in FY23 Q3
28. Other Auto-Related News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Auto Parts / Machinery
29. Toyota Industries Updates Engine Issue
30. Komatsu’s FY23 Q3 OP +9% Above Consensus; Positive on FY24
31. HCM’s Second Q3 Conference Call Boosts HCM, Komatsu Shares
32. Denso FY23 Q3 OP Could Have Been a Record
33. Aisin FY23 Q3 OP Weighed Down by Surprise Charge
34. Toyota Industries Hits Listing High
Enterprise Software / IT Services
35. NRI Boosts FY23 Full-Year NP on Lower Tax; Raises Dividends
36. Cybozu Produces Stronger Dec Sales and OP
37. SRE Holdings Surges Following Strong FY23 Q3
38. TIS FY23 Q3: Double Digit Rise in Orders, Sales Beat Consensus
Pharma / Healthcare 9
39. M3 Inc FY23 Q3 OP -8% YoY
40. Chugai Pharm FY23 Q4 OP -19%, Guides For ¥460bil in Core OP in FY24
41. Takeda FY23 Q3 OP -29% YoY
42. Olympus Showcasing Latest Products
43. Omron Showcases Carbon Footprint Visualisation Tool
44. Other Pharma News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Telecoms
45. KDDI FY23 Q3 OP +1% YoY 1
Small- / Mid-Cap Insights
46. The FY23 Q3 Performance of CUC’s Existing Services Improved YoY
47. A Solid FY24 Q1 Performance for M&A Research Institute
48. ANA Results Bode Well for Inbound Tourism Plays
49. Insource’s Jan KPIs
Misc. / Market / Strategy / Macro
50. Latest Jobs Data Shows Job Vacancies Falling, Searchers Rising
51. Slow Wage Growth Takes its Toll on Retail Sales
52. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
List of PSA Published Reports Since October 2023