Japan’s biggest steel producer, NSSMC (Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation) has decided to change its name from NSSMC to Nippon Steel Corp from April 2019. The company will seek approval for the name change at its annual general shareholders’ meeting to be held on 26 Jun’18.
The change of name comes more than five years after NSSMC was created through the merger of Nippon Steel Corp. and Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd. in 2012.
The main objective of the name change is to clearly indicate that the company has originated in ‘Japan’ when entering the global market as Nippon which is a variant of Nihon means ‘Japan’ in Japanese language.
NSSMC decision to make ‘Nisshin Steel Corp’ its fully owned unit
The company has also decided to convert its subsidiary, ‘Nisshin Steel Corp’ (where NSSMC has 51% stake) into a fully owned unit and merge the group’s stainless steel operations into its stainless steel unit NSSC (Nippon Steel Sumikin Stainless Steel Corp) in Apr’19.
Nisshin Steel Corp’s 51% share was acquired by NSSMC in Mar’17 and was declared as its subsidiary in an attempt to withstand deteriorating conditions in the industry triggered by China’s economic slowdown. The company is engaged in the manufacturing of stainless steel, coated steel, special steel, and hot rolled products.
NSSC, the largest stainless steel manufacturer in Japan, was established in October 2003 through the consolidation of the stainless steel divisions of Nippon Steel Corporation and Sumitomo Metal Industries, Ltd.
This move of making Nisshin Steel Corp as its fully owned unit has come amid fierce competition from major steel-makers in developing countries who have been expanding market share through aggressive production increases and competitive pricing.
The steel sector across the globe is also faced with a new challenge of U.S.’s recently imposed 25% tariffs on steel and 10% tariffs on aluminum, sparking fears of a global trade war.
The company has vowed to maximize synergistic effects within the group to respond to the changing business environment, including growing demand for lightweight steel sheets used in electric vehicles.
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