By Kantaro Komiya
TOKYO (Reuters) – Demand for gas turbines should remain solid even if data centres require less electricity, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ (MHI) finance chief said on Tuesday, after a market rout last week driven by the arrival of Chinese AI DeepSeek.
While DeepSeek’s performance remains unproven, MHI had no particular concern on its turbine business since an efficient AI, if any, would not affect the view that global power demand continues to rise, said chief financial officer Hisato Kozawa.
“Rather, I was kind of moved to see our company was now traded as an AI-related stock,” Kozawa said of the DeepSeek-induced sell-off last week.
The Japanese industrial giant on Tuesday released record third-quarter earnings and annual forecasts for the financial year ending in March, driven largely by strong demand for gas turbines used in power plants.
MHI raised its net profit forecast for fiscal 2024/25 to 240 billion yen ($1.55 billion), more than 8% higher than its previous guidance.
Its share price has more than doubled over the past year, thanks also to growing orders for jets, naval ships and missiles amid Japan’s defence buildup.
MHI shares closed on Tuesday at 2,218 yen per share, down 0.6% from the previous day’s close, while the benchmark Nikkei 225 was up 0.7%.
($1 = 155.2800 yen)
(Reporting by Kantaro Komiya; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
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