Nichiha USA exits general-purpose housing cladding business

Nichiha Corporation’s board of directors resolved on October 6, 2025, to withdraw its consolidated subsidiary, Nichiha USA, Inc., from the general-purpose exterior cladding business for the residential market. This decision follows intensified competition and a slowdown in housing starts since 2023, leading to reduced sales prices and significant performance declines for Nichiha USA. Factory utilization and defect rates showed no improvement despite support from Japan.

The general-purpose exterior cladding business, produced at Macon Plant No. 1, reported net sales of JPY 10.4 bn and an operating loss of JPY 0.6 bn for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025. For the three months ended June 30, 2025, it recorded net sales of JPY 1.9 bn and an operating loss of JPY 0.4 bn. The withdrawal is expected to be completed by the end of December 2025.

Nichiha USA will now focus its resources on the high-end exterior cladding business for the commercial and residential markets in the United States. Nichiha Corporation anticipates recording approximately JPY 3 bn in impairment losses on fixed assets and other one-time expenses related to this withdrawal as extraordinary losses in the current fiscal year. Its consolidated earnings forecast for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026, remains unrevised, pending a clearer estimate of total costs.