Now I will explain the details of the Q3 financial results. Please refer to the slides for briefing on Q3 . First, let's look at the key points of the financial results on page one. Regarding the earnings overview, nine months results for the Q3 showed that revenue declined due to the sluggish market conditions in China and the absence of last year's high demand of Audio Equipment for professional use in Europe and the U.S. Core operating profit declined due to the sluggish market conditions in China, reduced sales of high-margin Audio Equipment for professional use, and the impact of additional U.S. tariffs. Now the full-year forecast. We are revising our revenue forecast upward due to the weakening yen. However, we are maintaining our previous core operating profit forecast. Now, please turn to page three. This slide shows the nine -months results for the Q3 .
Revenue reached JPY 341.0 billion, core operating profit was JPY 25.1 billion, the core operating profit ratio was 7.4%, and net profit was JPY 20.2 billion. The year-on-year comparison is shown on the right, which includes the impact of exchange rates. Excluding the impact of exchange rates, revenue decreased by JPY 7.9 billion year-on-year, and core operating profit decreased by JPY 7.4 billion year-on-year for the cumulative results of the Q3 . Please turn to page four. The waterfall chart shows the comparison of nine months core operating profit for the Q3 against the previous year. Cumulative core operating profit for the Q3 of the previous fiscal year was JPY 31.9 billion, while this fiscal year ended at JPY 25.1 billion. In the middle of the waterfall chart, there are two bars: Tariff Impact and Tariff Countermeasure.
The tariff impact reflects payments made, while countermeasures represent gains achieved through price optimization and other countermeasures against tariffs. Net of these, the impact was JPY -2.6 billion. Other positive factors shown here include the effects of structural reforms implemented last fiscal year, primarily focused on acoustic pianos, and control of SG&A expenses. However, on the left side, the decrease in sales, production, and model mix are shown as a JPY -7.8 billion representing the major negative factor. Regarding decrease in sales, approximately half of this JPY 7.8 billion decrease stems from reduced revenue. This is primarily due to the factors mentioned earlier: the cycle of high demand in the Professional audio equipment market has run its course, and the slump in piano demand. Other factors include a deterioration in the model mix due to reduced sales of high-value, high-margin products like digital mixers and grand pianos.
Of course, this figure also incorporates the effects of regular price optimization and productivity improvements, including productivity gains separate from the effects of last fiscal year structural reforms. However, the negative factors are substantial, resulting in the loss of JPY 7.8 billion. Now, please turn to page five. This slide shows performance by business segment. For the Musical Instruments business, revenue was JPY 223.3 billion, core operating profit was JPY 16.4 billion, and the core operating profit ratio was 7.3%. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates, as before, revenue decreased by JPY 0.3 billion, and core operating profit decreased by JPY 2.7 billion. Moving on to the Audio Equipment business, revenue was JPY 104.6 billion, core operating profit was JPY 8.5 billion, and the core operating profit ratio was 8.1%.
Similarly, excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates, revenue decreased by JPY 7.8 billion, and core operating profit decreased by JPY 5.1 billion. The results for Others business are as shown. Please turn to page six. This page shows our full-year outlook. For revenue, we project JPY 462 billion, year-on-year, and the changes from the previous forecast are shown on the right side. Core operating profit is forecast to be at JPY 33 billion, which we maintain at the previous forecast level. Net profit is projected at JPY 24 billion, an increase of JPY 1 billion from the previous forecast. Please note that the structural reforms associated with our recent termination of Golf Products business, as announced in our press release, are included within this net profit of JPY 24 billion. These costs are recognized as an estimate for the Q4 .
Regarding exchange rates, please refer to the information below. The exchange rate assumptions for the Q4 are 155 yen to the U.S. dollar and 180 yen to the euro, reflecting a weaker yen compared to the assumptions used in our previous Q2 results. Now, please turn to page seven. The factors affecting core operating profit are shown in the upper section as a comparison with the previous period, and in the lower section as a comparison with the previous forecast. First, comparing with JPY 36.7 billion in the previous period, we project full-year core operating profit of JPY 33.0 billion, a decrease of JPY 3.7 billion. Looking at the details, we can see the tariff impacts and tariff countermeasures in the middle section. These factors combine to result in a decrease of JPY 3.7 billion. This is the first negative factor.
Other positive factors compared to the previous period include the positive effect of structural reforms implemented last fiscal year, amounting to JPY 2.0 billion, and the absence of JPY 2.3 billion in one-time expenses incurred at the end of the previous fiscal year. However, as mentioned earlier, the negative factors of decrease in sales, production, and model mix amount to a -JPY 4.2 billion. The negative factors are the decrease in sales mentioned earlier and the worsening of model mix. On the other hand, productivity improvements and normal price optimization are positive factors. Overall, the net result is a negative impact of JPY 4.2 billion. Other factors include a JPY 0.2 billion decrease in Others business operations and JPY 0.7 billion decrease in SG&A expenses.
While this represents JPY 0.7 billion increase in expenses compared to the previous year, as explained earlier, this SG&A increase reflects upfront investments in growth areas, primarily focused on Audio Equipment for professional use. Regarding the comparison with the previous forecast, the target remains unchanged at JPY 33.0 billion. However, with the effect of exchange rates pushing up the profit by JPY 2.0 billion, factors such as decrease in sales, production, and model mix, primarily in the Q4 , as well as the deterioration in Others business, particularly the termination of the golf products business, have led to a worse outlook compared to the previous forecast. Therefore, assuming the exchange rate remains unchanged, we expect to achieve a profit of JPY 33.0 billion. Now, please turn to page eight. This shows the outlook by business segment.
For the Musical Instruments business, revenue is projected at JPY 303 billion, core operating profit at JPY 22.5 billion, and the core operating profit ratio is 7.4%. For Audio Equipment, revenue is projected at JPY 141 billion, core operating profit at JPY 10.5 billion, and the core operating profit ratio is also 7.4%. Please refer to the slide for Others business. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates, the forecast for the Musical Instruments business revenue is up by JPY 5.4 billion and core operating profit down JPY 1.4 billion. For Audio Equipment , revenue is projected to fall by JPY 7.8 billion and core operating profit down JPY 4.2 billion. Please turn to page nine. Here, similarly, we present outlook by business segment in comparison with the previous forecast.
For the Musical Instruments business, excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates as mentioned earlier, we project revenue to decrease by JPY 3.2 billion and core operating profit to decrease by JPY 0.6 billion. For the Audio Equipment business, we project revenue to decrease by JPY 1.0 billion and core operating profit to decrease by JPY 0.7 billion. For Others business, the decrease is more significant. We project revenue to decrease by JPY 2.3 billion and core operating profit to decrease by JPY 0.7 billion. Now, I will explain the overview by business segment. First, please turn to page 11. This slide shows the status of the Musical Instruments business. For the nine -months results for the Q3 , sales were solid, excluding Pianos. Looking at China specifically for the Q3 , sales turned to positive.
For Pianos, while sales in China increased in the Q3 , other markets remained weak, leading to a decrease in revenue. For Digital Musical Instruments, we have mitigated the tariff impact through price optimization and maintained revenue at the previous year's level. Wind, Strings, and Percussion Instruments, and Guitars continued to perform well, achieving increased revenue. Full-year outlook: Recovery and revenue growth are expected across all product categories except Pianos. Pianos is expected to see revenue decrease due to weak demand in China and other regions. Digital Musical Instruments are projected to recover and grow in all regions except China. Wind, Strings, and Percussion instruments are forecast to remain steady, and Guitars are projected to achieve double-digit growth. Now let's look at the quarterly trends on page 12. This slide shows the sales status of major product category.
First, the second column from the left shows Digital Musical Instruments, where we anticipate to grow by 4% year-on-year for the full year. The Q3 is shown at -1% year-on-year, which includes the factor of delayed shipments of some best-selling products shifting to the Q4 . Wind, strings, and percussion instruments showed steady growth by 6% in Q3, while Guitars positive 9% in Q3. Next, please turn to page 13. This shows the regional breakdown of the Musical Instruments business, also by quarter. First, looking at Europe in the middle, marked in green, we project full-year sales at positive 7% compared to the previous year. The Q4 shows a particularly strong performance. As previously explained, the prior year saw significant declines in both shipments and orders due to core system installation issues.
This quarter reflects recovery from that situation, coupled with increased sales of Digital pianos and Wind instruments in Q4, leading to strong forecasts. Regarding China mentioned earlier, Q3 sales were +1%. Looking at this on a quarterly basis, it marks the first time in a while that quarterly revenue has exceeded the previous year's level. As additional information, regarding the revenue situation for the current two-month period from December to January, revenue in China, particularly for Musical Instruments such as keyboards, is trending steadily. This steady performance includes Acoustic pianos, leading to a reduction in piano distribution inventory. Moving on to page 14, the Audio Equipment business. For the nine -months results for the Q3 : Audio equipment for professional use and Audio Equipment for mobility use saw a pause in revenue growth. In Audio Equipment for consumer use, home audio business scaled down.
Audio Equipment for professional use performed well in emerging markets, but revenue declined in Europe and the U.S. as the high demand from the previous year leveled off. Audio Equipment for mobility use grew in Japan, but declined as expected in China. Overall, Audio Equipment revenue decreased. The full-year outlook is as shown below. Now, please turn to page 15. Regarding Audio Equipment for professional use in the middle section, we are forecasting -5% for the full year. Previously, we had projected -3%, but some investment delays occurred in North America between Q3 and Q4, leading to the revision in full-year forecast. For Audio Equipment for mobility use, we are forecasting -11% for the full year, compared to the previous forecast of -15%. For the current period, we anticipated a temporary decline, but the actual performance has exceeded the expectations.
That is, the Q3 outperformed the previous year's figure by +19%. Next, please turn to page 16 for the regional breakdown of Audio Equipment . The Japanese market grew by +12% year-on-year. As explained previously, this growth stems from increased sales of network equipment and automotive sound systems distributed in Japan. Regarding Europe, which is shown in the middle section, we have revised the figure from the previously reported -14% to 17%. This adjustment reflects a slight slowdown in investment for corporate installation of Audio Equipment . Now, please turn to page 17. This covers the status of Others business. For the Q3 results, the strong performance of automobile interior wood components continued. Looking ahead to the full year, we expect increased revenue for automobile interior wood components and also for FA equipment. However, golf products are facing challenges.
Therefore, overall for this segment, we anticipate results to be on par with the previous year. Next, please turn to page 19. This is the balance sheet summary. Firstly, the status of inventory. At the end of March 2025, inventory stood at JPY 150.5 billion. For the current fiscal year-end, we forecast JPY 152.0 billion, an increase of JPY 1.5 billion. Excluding foreign exchange effects, inventory is projected to be JPY 144.5 billion, a decrease of JPY 6.0 billion compared to the previous year's actual results. Equity also increased from the previous fiscal year-end, primarily due to foreign exchange translation differences. Please turn to page 20. I will now explain ROE, ROIC, and shareholder returns. For ROE, we forecast 5.3%. This represents an increase of 0.2% from the previously stated 5.1%. For ROIC, the previous forecast was 5%, but it has now decreased to 4.8%.
While the denominator portion has increased for both metrics this time, ROE has improved slightly due to an increase in net profit of JPY 1.0 billion for the current period. That said, ROE is still projected to remain below the cost of shareholders' equity. We will continue to strive to achieve an ROE that exceeds the cost of shareholders' equity through ongoing profit improvement and the steady execution of shareholder returns. Now, regarding shareholder returns: The annual dividend remains unchanged at 26 JPY per share. The payout ratio will be 48.8%. Finally, we present the topics for the Q3 . This is on page 23. First, on the left side, under Rebuilding a Strong Business Foundation, we highlight new products that pursue intrinsic product value, specifically those expected to contribute to revenue starting in the Q4 and beyond.
At the very bottom, under Music Production Tools, we feature the MGX Series, URX Series, and CC1. These were announced at the U.S. Trade Show NAMM 2026, which took place in January, and at the ISE Professional Audio Show, which is currently taking place in Spain. We are strengthening PR efforts to target these customers as we have high expectations for their future performance. Next, as part of evolving to create the future and explore new businesses, we've highlighted topics from Yamaha Music Innovations. Our Yamaha Music Innovations leaders were selected for Billboard's Inaugural Finance 50, the Top 50 Investors. Regarding our future new business development, we will be holding an event in March. We would be delighted if you could join us. That concludes my presentation. Thank you for your attention.