Recently, Japan's seven major automotive manufacturers unveiled their financial results for the April-September period of the 2025 fiscal year. Due to external influences, notably US automotive tariffs, these automakers collectively grappled with an additional expenditure burden of roughly 1.5 trillion yen. This marks the first time in five years that their net profits have experienced an across-the-board decline during the corresponding six-month span.

Take Subaru as a case in point. Its net profit from April to September stood at 90.4 billion yen, representing a 45% year-on-year drop, though slightly outperforming market forecasts. Revenue climbed to 2.3856 trillion yen, a 5% increase from the previous year. Globally, new vehicle deliveries reached 473,000 units, up 5% year-on-year, with particularly robust sales in the US market. Nevertheless, operating profit plummeted by 54% year-on-year, mainly attributable to additional costs in certain markets and exchange losses stemming from the yen's appreciation against the US dollar. As Subaru relies on exporting fully assembled vehicles from Japan to the US, the impact of structural costs on its operations is substantial.