Sony sales sink after tsunami
In the year to March, sales plunged nearly 10 per cent to ¥6.5 trillion, as unit sales slipped in flat-panel TVs, video and digital cameras, game machines and personal computers. Sony’s core TV business has now gone eight years without a profit as competitors from cheaper bases such as South Korea and Taiwan gain market share.
Under new chief executive Kazuo Hirai, Sony is slashing costs – 10,000 jobs, or 6 per cent of the global workforce, will go – in a bid to turn around its struggling TV unit. Hirai sees opportunities for a profitable future in mobile devices such as smartphones, gaming and cameras, as well as medical devices and electric car batteries.
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Hide AdSony forecast that it would return to a relatively modest operating profit of ¥30bn for the current year. However, many analysts remain sceptical as the firm lags behind rivals in the smartphone market.