OSAKA, Japan (BRAIN) — Shimano bike division net sales in the first half increased 11.6% year-over-year with the component giant saying strong global interest continues despite inventory remaining high in some regions. In North America, Shimano said retail sales of bikes remained weak while inventory was appropriate.
For the period ending June 30, component net sales were 181.4 million yen ($1.2 million), compared with 162.5 million yen at the same time last year. Operating income decreased 2.9%, to 23.6 million yen from 24.4 million yen. The bike division accounted for 76% of Shimano's business with fishing tackle making up most of the rest.
On a quarterly basis, second-quarter bike division sales were 93.5 million yen, up 8% from 86.5 million yen at the same time last year.
Company-wide for the first half of this year, net sales were 237.5 million yen, an increase of 9.5% from 216.8 million yen at the same time last year. Operating income was down 9.2%, from 28.1 million yen from 30.9 million yen.
Shimano's forecast for the rest of 2025 calls for a 2.1% drop in company-wide net sales (460 billion yen) and a 34.3% decline in operating income (46 billion yen).
In the Japanese market, Shimano said inventory was stabilized but sales were slow because of the rising prices of bikes. In the European market, bike retail sales were "robust" because of favorable early spring weather conditions and a slight decrease in inventory levels. In the Asian and Central and South American markets, bike sales remained depressed but inventory stabilized. In the Chinese market, inventory remains high.
In June, Shimano released its updated XTR, Deore XT, and Deore wireless lineups and the Q'AUTO, a self-powered automatic gear-shifting system. "Under these market conditions, the Shimano Group's products were well received," Shimano said.
