❯ SoftBank Group posts a $7 billion quarterly loss after revising US data center power plans

Revenue rises as profit turns to lossSoftBank Group released its fiscal second-quarter results on November 10. It recorded a net loss of ¥1.12 trillion, or about $7 billion, for the three months ended September, compared with a profit of about ¥2.5 trillion a year earlier. Revenue of about ¥2.22 trillion beat the ¥2.02 trillion consensus cited by CNBC.

Power equipment bought ahead of timeSoftBank paid in advance to secure US data center power equipment as it anticipated shortages and long lead times. Payments reached about $9.48 billion by the end of September. After revising its procurement plans, the group recorded a related loss of ¥597.2 billion, or about $3.7 billion, in the six months through September. Declines in some listed holdings also affected results.

Data center projects are still movingSoftBank continued to highlight its Ohio project at the earnings briefing, pointing to a 20-year lease with OpenAI covering eight gigawatts of IT capacity. AI data centers need a power supply before facilities and chips can come online. Paying for equipment in advance can save delivery time, while changes to project plans can affect how much of that spending is recovered.

▮ SIGNALWhen power equipment has to be ordered far in advance, a data center’s exposure starts with the deposit, and a change in plans can produce a loss before the project ever comes online.