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Representative Director, President and COO Tadashi Imai

　I am Tadashi Imai, Representative Director, President and COO of Nippon Steel Corporation.

　Nippon Steel has consistently implemented various long-term initiatives ahead of our competitors, including structural measures for domestic production facilities, order mix sophistication, and securing appropriate levels of spreads. As a result, we have successfully reduced our break-even point by 40%. These initiatives have been successful, enabling us to achieve stable and high-level profits even under challenging business conditions. Our earning power today is among the best global steelmakers.

　In addition to rebuilding the domestic steel business including Group companies, we are currently pursuing a robust business structure by combining two business strategies: one is the "horizontal" business growth through the deepening and expansion of the overseas steel business, and the other is the "vertical" business expansion through the integration of the upstream and downstream of the steel supply chain, spanning from our raw material business to distribution networks, into one of our business domains.
　Particularly in the overseas steel business, we focus on "segments where demand growth is assured and our technological and product capabilities can be utilized to the extent possible." In June 2025, we completed the merger between our United States subsidiary and U. S. Steel, in line with our policy of expanding integrated steel production starting from iron resources through mergers and acquisitions. Our commitments to the U.S. government enable us to secure management flexibility and profitability at U. S. Steel while protecting U.S. national security and will not pose any obstacle to our strategy for further growth of U. S. Steel. The U.S. steel market is overwhelmingly large globally, with demand reaching 150 million tons when potential demand is factored in. Additionally, given the high ratio of high-grade steel to total steel demand, the market is expected to continue to grow steadily in the future. The capital investments we plan to implement in this market in the future are deemed necessary and effective to enhance U. S. Steel's corporate value, and there are no issues with their profitability. We will significantly enhance U. S. Steel's manufacturing capabilities by transferring our manufacturing techniques. In addition, we will increase the added value of their products by introducing new strategic products that U. S. Steel could not manufacture.

　Meanwhile, climate change measures are one of our top-priority management issues. In this initiative, we will not only pursue innovation in production processes through technological development but also engage in creating a GX Steel market and its related institutions to recover substantial amounts of money needed for investment. In addition, our efforts encompass the necessary infrastructure development and proactive dialogue with the government and society to garner support. Moreover, as we now face unprecedentedly diverse and challenging management issues, we must enhance the power of human resources, which is particularly crucial in our initiatives aimed at addressing sustainability issues. The human resources we have cultivated in the domestic business can further grow in many scenes, such as overseas business expansion, by continuously tackling new challenges while managing various risks. We will continue to work tirelessly to strengthen the competitiveness of our human resources.

　Nippon Steel will strive to become a steelmaker with the world's best capabilities by continually enhancing its sustainable corporate value in the future.