Wire & cable: Earnings at non-Japanese companies (18)

Research evidence excerpt

Wire & cable: Earnings at non-Japanese companies (18)

Global Markets Research

Wire & cable: Earnings at non-Japanese 22 July 2026companies (18)

EQUITY: JAPAN STEEL, NONFERROUS METALS, WIRE & CABLE

Research Analysts

InP epitaxial wafer producer IQE raises guidance

Japan steel, nonferrous metals,

wire & cable

Yuji Matsumoto - NSCQuick Note yuji.matsumoto@nomura.com

+81 3 6703 1220

We consider this positive news for Sumitomo Electric Industries and JX Advanced

Metals' earnings and share prices Japan chemicals & textiles

On 21 July, UK-based IQE, which manufactures compound semiconductors such as InP Daiki Ban - NSC

(indium phosphide) epiwafers, raised its 26/12 y-y sales growth guidance to "growth in daiki.ban@nomura.com

+81 3 6703 1124excess of 30%". The company attributed this to increased demand for products such as

InPs for data centers and AI infrastructure. The company's share price rose around 30%

the same day.

Considering the market growth for InP substrates, the company's guidance for annual

sales growth in excess of 30% comes as no surprise. It had been guiding for 26/12 sales

of £90–100mn (-8% to +3% y-y) as of January 2026, but at the end of May the company

said it expected y-y sales growth of over 20%. This latest announcement is thus a further

upward revision to guidance.

The company has indicated that the upward revision reflects robust demand for optical

devices and InP substrates, and we see this as further confirmation of tight

supply/demand for InP substrates. We think conditions in Sumitomo Electric Industries'

[5802] (Buy) optical device business will remain more favorable than at rivals, as the

company has an integrated production setup from InP substrates through to optical

devices.