Panasonic Raises Profit Forecast on AI and Battery Demand

Panasonic Holdings reported a significant increase in second-quarter operating profit for its energy unit, which rose to 55.6 billion yen from 1.2 billion yen in the previous year. This growth resulted from higher sales of energy storage systems for data centers and in-vehicle batteries in North America.

The company noted that demand for in-vehicle batteries from strategic customers, including Tesla, continues to significantly outperform the broader market. Based on these results, Panasonic raised the energy unit's full-year profit forecast for the period ending March 2027 by 16 percent to 198 billion yen.

Panasonic also increased its overall group operating profit forecast by 120 billion yen to 710 billion yen. The company attributed this broader upward revision to stronger-than-expected growth in AI-related businesses.