Japanese high-tech giant Panasonic Corp returned to the black in the third quarter on management streamlining and upgraded its profit outlook for the full fiscal year, the company said yesterday.
Osaka-based Panasonic posted a net profit of ¥32.3 billion (US$360 million) in the October-December quarter, reversing a net loss of ¥63.1 billion a year earlier, said Japan’s biggest supplier of home appliances.
Operating profit more than tripled to ¥101.0 billion, while revenue gained 0.4 percent at ¥1.887 trillion in the quarter.
The profit gains were “due mainly to comprehensive streamlining of management,” the company said in a statement.
It added that the market for consumer electronics was still difficult even as the global economy is gradually emerging from its deep slump.
“In the electronics industry during the third quarter, despite visible signs of market recovery in such regions as China and Asia, severe business conditions continued,” including a shift to lower-priced products, it said.
For the nine months to December, the company still logged a net loss of ¥14.6 billion, against a year-earlier profit of ¥65.4 billion.
Its revenue during the nine months was ¥5.2 trillion, 16.1 percent less than a year earlier, while an operating profit for the period plunged to 49.0 percent to ¥129.9 billion.
For the full year ending March 31, Panasonic kept its net loss estimate unchanged at ¥140 billion, but raised its operating profit outlook to ¥150 billion from the October forecast of ¥120 billion.
It also raised its revenue outlook to ¥7.35 trillion from its previous estimate of ¥7 trillion.
“Although the global economy seems to be on the way to recovery, severe business condition continues with the appreciation of the yen and ever-intensifying global price competition,” the company said.
A Chinese freighter that allegedly snapped an undersea cable linking Taiwan proper to Penghu County is suspected of being owned by a Chinese state-run company and had docked at the ports of Kaohsiung and Keelung for three months using different names. On Tuesday last week, the Togo-flagged freighter Hong Tai 58 (宏泰58號) and its Chinese crew were detained after the Taipei-Penghu No. 3 submarine cable was severed. When the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) first attempted to detain the ship on grounds of possible sabotage, its crew said the ship’s name was Hong Tai 168, although the Automatic Identification System (AIS)
An Akizuki-class destroyer last month made the first-ever solo transit of a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship through the Taiwan Strait, Japanese government officials with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The JS Akizuki carried out a north-to-south transit through the Taiwan Strait on Feb. 5 as it sailed to the South China Sea to participate in a joint exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces that day. The Japanese destroyer JS Sazanami in September last year made the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s first-ever transit through the Taiwan Strait, but it was joined by vessels from New Zealand and Australia,
SECURITY: The purpose for giving Hong Kong and Macau residents more lenient paths to permanent residency no longer applies due to China’s policies, a source said The government is considering removing an optional path to citizenship for residents from Hong Kong and Macau, and lengthening the terms for permanent residence eligibility, a source said yesterday. In a bid to prevent the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from infiltrating Taiwan through immigration from Hong Kong and Macau, the government could amend immigration laws for residents of the territories who currently receive preferential treatment, an official familiar with the matter speaking on condition of anonymity said. The move was part of “national security-related legislative reform,” they added. Under the amendments, arrivals from the Chinese territories would have to reside in Taiwan for
CRITICAL MOVE: TSMC’s plan to invest another US$100 billion in US chipmaking would boost Taiwan’s competitive edge in the global market, the premier said The government would ensure that the most advanced chipmaking technology stays in Taiwan while assisting Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) in investing overseas, the Presidential Office said yesterday. The statement follows a joint announcement by the world’s largest contract chipmaker and US President Donald Trump on Monday that TSMC would invest an additional US$100 billion over the next four years to expand its semiconductor manufacturing operations in the US, which would include construction of three new chip fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities, and a research and development center. The government knew about the deal in advance and would assist, Presidential
RSS