TOKYO, April 28 (Reuters) - Nippon Steel Corp reported a 40 percent fall in profit for the financial year just ended as crumbling car sales knocked demand for steel, and it forecast zero profit this year.
The world's second-biggest steelmaker, which competes with Japan's JFE Holdings Inc, South Korea's POSCO and China's Baosteel, said recurring profit fell to 336.1 billion yen ($3.5 billion) in the year ended March 31.
That fell short of a consensus estimate for 349.4 billion yen profit in a poll of 17 analysts by Thomson Reuters.
Nippon Steel, a big supplier to household names like Toyota Motor Corp, Panasonic Corp and Komatsu Ltd, expects to break even on a recurring profit basis, which is before tax and exceptional items.
That compares to analysts' expectations for a 6.08 billion yen loss.
Japanese steelmakers are expected to face a steeper slide in profits than their Asian rivals this year as they rely heavily on demand from automakers, who want cheaper steel. Yen strength, which reduces returns on export sales, is also hurting.
Nippon Steel shares have risen about 16 percent this year, broadly in line with a 14 percent increase in the iron and steel sub-index. (Reporting by Yuko Inoue, editing by Ian Geoghegan)