Sony Corp drastically lowered profit and sales forecasts for the current fiscal year yesterday, blaming deteriorating sales of flat-panel TVs and other gadgets battered by a global slowdown.
The latest numbers would mean that Sony’s profit for the fiscal year ending next March are set to plunge 59 percent from the previous year.
Tokyo-based Sony now expects a ¥150 billion (US$1.5 billion) profit for the year ending in March, and it gave the unfavorable currency rate as another big reason for the faltering results.
Back in July, Sony had expected to post ¥240 billion in profit for the fiscal year.
Sony, which makes the Walkman portable music player and PlayStation 3 game console, had counted on the dollar trading at about ¥105, but changed that expectation to ¥100.
Fears have been growing about the earnings of major Japanese companies scheduled to announce results in the next few weeks.
The benchmark for the Tokyo stock market lost 2.5 percent yesterday because of such worries.
The financial credit crisis, which began in the US, is expected to weigh on exporters like Sony, which rakes in more than half its sales in North America and Europe.
“Consumer spending will likely slow significantly across the globe and the stronger yen will weigh on company earnings,” said Yoji Takeda, who helps manage US$1.1 billion at RBC Investment (Asia) Ltd in Hong Kong. “The impact on Japanese exporters is substantial.’’
Sony also lowered its sales forecast for the year to ¥9 trillion from the previous ¥9.2 trillion, although that marks a 1 percent improvement from the previous fiscal year.
Sony said in a statement that it expects lower profits in its electronics business because of falling sales of liquid-crystal- display TVs, digital cameras and video camcorders.
Price drops from intense competition also hurt the numbers, Sony said.
The plunge on the Japanese stock market has also eroded the gains Sony is getting from equity and bond investments, the company said. But Sony said results are in line with previous expectations in its gaming and movies division.
Sony said it expects to post a ¥21 billion profit for the July to September period, down 72 percent from ¥73.7 billion for the same period last year. Sales are expected to inch down 1 percent year on year to ¥2.07 trillion, it said.
Sony is to release second quarter earnings next week.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS