Mazda Motor said on Tuesday it expects a ¥145.2b ($987.02m) hit to its operating profit this business year due to US import tariffs, as the Japanese carmaker rolled out measures to cushion the effects.
To soften the blow of the tariffs, the company said it was taking measures including changing shipping routes, increasing output at its plant in the US state of Alabama and adjusting production volumes.
The effects of the higher US duties on results this year remained “quite significant”, assuming that exports from Japan would face a 15% tariff and those from Mexico 25%, CFO Jeffrey Guyton said.
Without its countermeasures, the company would be at risk of a ¥233.5bn operating profit hit for the year ending March 2026, Guyton told reporters during a briefing.
Mazda has been trying to boost sales of its CX-50 crossover sport utility vehicle. The company has a major plant in the Mexican state of Guanajuato from where it exports vehicles to the US.
It said last week it sold about 210,000 vehicles in the US over the first half, up 4% from a year earlier.
Mazda has forecast a full-year operating profit of ¥50bn for the year ending March 2026, down sharply from the previous financial year.
It had previously withheld guidance due to uncertainty surrounding the US tariffs.
Reuters
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