Japanese companies reign in carbon fiber, industrial robots

TOKYO -- Japanese corporations were the global leader last year in nine out of 50 product and service categories, showing strength in businesses such as carbon fiber that cater to other companies, a Nikkei study released Sunday shows.

     U.S. companies were No. 1 in 16 categories, followed by 10 for European concerns. South Korean companies had the largest market share in eight categories while Chinese businesses led in six. American and Chinese companies were strong in consumer products thanks to their large home markets.

     Toray Industries solidified its lead in the carbon fiber market by expanding its product lineup. The company known for high-performance products for aircraft and other applications acquired Zoltek, an American player with strength in low-cost offerings, in March 2014.

     Sony increased its top market share in complementary metal-oxide semiconductor image sensors. Shipments grew with the expansion of the smartphone market as Apple and other big smartphone manufacturers adopted Sony's CMOS image sensors. 

     Fanuc was the leader in industrial robots used in assembly plants. It enjoyed demand from new factories for automobiles and other products, mainly in North America.

     Japanese companies made strides in business-use products, even where they are not the global leader. In the field of lithium-ion batteries, second-ranked Panasonic narrowed the gap with market leader Samsung SDI of South Korea thanks to increased shipments for Tesla Motors' electric cars.

     In consumer products, Canon expanded its leading shares in both compact digital cameras and interchangeable-lens digital cameras.

     Toyota Motor led the automobile market. Renesas Electronics was the top company in microcontrollers, Nichia was No. 1 in white light-emitting diodes and Sony Computer Entertainment was the leader in video game systems.

(Nikkei)