Revenue Up, Operating Profit Down at JT

Japan Tobacco’s revenue increased by 2.8 percent to ¥519.6 billion ($4.9 billion) in the first quarter of 2020 compared to the same quarter in 2019.

Operating profit decreased by 29.4 percent to ¥129 billion.

“Our consolidated first quarter results were strong, driven by robust growth in the international tobacco business, which had a strong first quarter and significant favorable pricing gains compared to the previous year,” said Masamichi Terabatake, president and CEO of the JT Group. “As of the first quarter, there was limited impact to our business following the Covid-19 outbreak.

“We are not revising the 2020 forecast. Given that the global impacts of Covid-19 are becoming prevalent from April onwards, we will continue to closely monitor how the pandemic and the currency headwinds impact our business and financials.”