The earnings recovery for Japanese firms from the COVID-19 fallout is still uneven, with a wide gap remaining between manufacturers and nonmanufacturers.
A state of emergency was fully lifted in Japan at the start of the October-December quarter and economists say this should give a much-awaited boost to the nonmanufacturing sector, especially service providers that have lagged in a recovery led largely by exporters such as Toyota Motor Corp.
Still, Japan's major airlines are expected to stay in the red for a second year in the 12-month period through March 2022. Train operators are also predicting net losses for the fiscal year and travel agency H.I.S. Co. expects a record net loss of ¥53 billion ($467 million) in the year that ended in October, highlighting the severity of the blow from the pandemic.