It now expects annual sales will fall to JPY 7.80 trillion from JPY 8.11 trillion last year, due to lower components sales and weaker revenues from mobile phones, consumer electronics and its music business. This will be offset in part from expected growth in Playstation game consoles and the film studio business. Growth in Playstation and restructuring of the mobile business is expected to lead to a slightly increase in operating profit this year, to JPY 300 billion from JPY 294 billion last year. This includes an expected negative impact of JPY 115 billion from the earthquake on operating profit. Net profit will still fall to an estimated JPY 80 billion from JPY 148 billion last year due to higher taxes and the absence of one-time divestment gains.
For the mobile phone business, Sony forecast a 16.6 percent fall in annual sales to JPY 940 billion, due to a withdrawal from the mid-range market and some unprofitable geographic markets. Sony said it plans to focus more on high-end smartphones. The operating result should move from a loss of JPY 61.4 billion last year to a small profit of JPY 5 billion, thanks to cost reductions and restructuring as well as a better product mix.
