Mitsui Kinzoku Company, Limited

Business Details

Manufactures and sells Copper Foil (Carrier-attached Ultra-thin Copper Foil / Electrolytic Copper Foil for Printed Wiring Boards), Exhaust Gas Purification Catalyst, Functional Powder (Metal Powder for Electronic Materials, etc.), Battery Materials (Hydrogen Storage Alloy / Lithium Manganate), Rare Materials (High-purity Tantalum Oxide / Semiconductor Device Protective Film Materials, etc.), Ceramics Products, and Sputtering Targets (ITO, etc.). Main customers include semiconductor package substrates, multilayer boards for AI servers, smartphones, and motorcycles. With the organizational restructuring in April 2025, the Exhaust Gas Purification Catalyst business was transferred from the Mobility division, expanding the segment scope.

Recent Overview

Sales and profit both increased substantially due to higher copper foil sales volume and rising precious metal prices, marking a new record high

For FY2026 (ending March 2026), Functional Materials segment sales were ¥319,553 million (up 33.4% year on year), and segment ordinary income was ¥66,542 million (up 65.0% year on year), representing substantial increases in both sales and profit. The main factors were increased sales volume of copper foil (for AI servers and semiconductor package substrates), rising prices of precious metals such as palladium and rhodium, and sales price revisions and sales mix optimization reflecting demand trends. Expansion of production capacity for electrolytic copper foil for high-frequency substrates, along with additional expansion from FY2026 (ending March 2026) onward, has also been decided. Functional Materials segment ordinary income for FY2027 (ending March 2027) is forecast at ¥67,000 million, roughly in line with the previous fiscal year.

Key Products

Growth Drivers

• Increased sales volume of Carrier-attached Ultra-thin Copper Foil and electrolytic copper foil for high-frequency substrates driven by expansion of the semiconductor and AI server markets
• Solid demand for metal powder for electronic materials for multilayer ceramic capacitors (including atomized copper powder) and expansion of production capacity
• Expansion of supply capacity through increased production capacity for electrolytic copper foil for high-frequency substrates (additional phased expansion decided from FY2026 (ending March 2026) onward)
• Rising sales prices for sputtering targets and exhaust gas purification catalyst due to increases in precious metal prices such as indium, palladium, and rhodium
• Solid demand for motorcycle exhaust gas purification catalyst in India and China
• Launch of the next-generation battery materials business through construction of the initial mass-production plant for Solid Electrolyte for All-Solid-State Batteries (A-SOLiD®)
• Acceleration of advanced materials R&D utilizing the Kyushu Advanced Materials Development Center (established April 2026)
• Aggressive growth investment including expansion of the buy-side M&A budget under the FY2025 Mid-term Management Plan (from the original plan of ¥24.0 billion to ¥60.0 billion)

Risks

• Risk of inventory valuation losses due to fluctuations in non-ferrous metal prices (indium, palladium, rhodium, etc.)
• Risk of decreased yen-converted sales of overseas subsidiaries due to foreign exchange rate movements (yen appreciation)
• Risk of fluctuations in copper foil and functional powder sales volume due to demand fluctuations in the semiconductor and smartphone markets
• Geopolitical risk to Asian bases such as Taiwan, China, and Malaysia (deterioration in U.S.-China and Japan-China relations)
• Risk of export restrictions and tariff increases due to U.S. protectionist trade policy
• Long-term risk of decreased hydrogen storage alloy demand due to the shift from hybrid vehicles to electric vehicles
• Risk of weak demand for high-purity tantalum oxide due to deterioration in the smartphone SAW filter market environment
• Risk of decreased sales volume of display-use sputtering targets due to progress in local procurement by overseas panel makers
• Risk of resource and energy price fluctuations due to escalating tensions in the Middle East and restrictions on navigation through the Strait of Hormuz