Japan's second-largest banking group Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group hit a record 1.18 trillion yen ($8.1 billion) profit for the financial year ended March 2025 and sees more growth ahead even accounting for the hit to its business from tariff uncertainty.

Honda has reported its profit for the fiscal year through March slipped 24.5% from the previous year as its vehicle sales in China dropped.

Japan’s economy likely suffered a contraction in the first three months of this year, signaling underlying fragility even before US tariff measures started hitting the country in earnest, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg.