Construction and mining equipment manufacturer Komatsu Ltd., which last week made a $2.89 billion offer for Joy Global Inc., said first-quarter profit fell 52 percent as demand languished in markets such as the Middle East and Indonesia and the stronger yen crimped overseas revenue.
Net income fell to ¥15.6 billion for the three months ended June 30 from ¥32.5 billion a year earlier, the Tokyo-based company said Thursday. Sales fell 13 percent to ¥389.3 billion. The company reiterated that profit will likely fall by a third to ¥92 billion for the financial year through March 2017.
Komatsu and its peers are suffering from a prolonged slump in China, where construction spending has weakened. Additionally, the company's global mining customers have scaled back activity amid a collapse in metals prices, while a stronger yen is providing another setback for Komatsu and domestic rival Hitachi Construction Machinery Co. by making their products less competitive abroad.