Toshiba posts quarterly net loss, cuts outlook

Toshiba has halved its forecasts for full-year profits due to the weak economic conditions in Europe, stronger yen and supply-chain disruptions after the flooding in Thailand. The company said lower results will mainly be seen in Visual Products, which includes LCD TVs, and semiconductors. It now expects net profit for the year to March 2012 of JPY 65 billion, down from an estimate last May of JPY 140 billion and a reported JPY 137.8 billion the previous year. The forecast for operating profit falls to JPY 125 billion from JPY 240 billion, and sales are estimated at JPY 6.2 trillion, versus the earlier guidance of JPY 7.0 trillion and JPY 6.4 trillion a year ago. Sales for the three months to December fell 9.3 percent year-on-year to JPY 1.44 trillion, and operating profit fell to JPY 10.6 billion from JPY 37.5 billion, due mainly to weaker results from LCD TVs. The net result was a loss of JPY 10.6 billion versus a profit of JPY 12.4 billion a year earlier.