Panasonic's battery unit posts higher Q2 operating profit, lifts forecast

TOKYO, Oct 30 : Japan's Panasonic Holdings said on Friday that operating profit at its energy unit surged to 55.6 billion yen ($352 million) in the second quarter from 1.2 billion yen a year earlier, boosted by higher sales of in-vehicle batteries and data centre energy storage systems.

Here are more details:

• Panasonic raised the unit's full-year profit forecast for the year ending March 2027 by 16 per cent to 198 billion yen from 171 billion yen previously. The company makes batteries for Tesla and other EV makers.

• It also lifted its group operating profit forecast for the period by 120 billion yen, or 20 per cent, to 710 billion yen, in part due to stronger-than-expected growth in its AI-related businesses

• Panasonic said the unit's quarterly operating profit grew due to higher sales of EV batteries in North America and data centre energy storage systems

• It said demand from strategic customers for in-vehicle batteries continued to significantly outperform the overall market