Nintendo's earnings got an unexpected boost from US tariff refunds in the latest quarter.

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An unusual boost is showing up in some corporate earnings this summer: tariff refunds. Nintendo became the latest beneficiary of the boost on Thursday, reporting net profit of 147.4 billion Japanese yen, or $931 million, for the quarter ending June, up 54% from a year earlier and handily beating analyst expectations of 77.8 billion yen. Revenue fell about 10% to 517.8 billion yen, but still came in above expectations.Tariff refunds were a major contributor: The Kyoto-based maker of the Switch 2 said it recorded a $300 million tariff refund that had previously been recorded as cost of sales.Strong software sales, led by the video games Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream and Pokémon Pokopia, also helped lift margins.Shares of Nintendo closed 5% higher on Friday following the results. They are 24% lower this year.In its presentation, Nintendo said the tariffs related to the refunds "were primarily borne by the company rather than passed on to consumers through product prices."Nintendo has not said how it plans to use the refunds. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.