Akebono Brake Industry’s North American operations are expected to return to the black next fiscal year for the first time in six years, the Nikkei reported.
The company is projected to log a net profit of tens of millions to hundreds of millions of yen in North America for the year ending March 2014, after bleeding several hundred million yen in red ink this fiscal year.
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Akebono Brake has continued to lose money in that region due to a drop in orders after the financial crisis erupted, and because of poor results for the North American brake business acquired from Bosch in 2009. But the tide is expected to change because the unprofitable production of parts for a major US automaker will end, and new orders will likely be strong on the back of a growing automobile market.
The North American business reported an operating loss of JPY5.4bn last fiscal year but is seen swinging around to an operating profit of about JPY100m this fiscal year, thanks in part to cuts in procurement costs for cast parts and higher sales prices.
Akebono Brake’s North American sales are expected to surpass domestic sales this fiscal year.
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