Panasonic forecasts biggest loss in 10 years

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) November 1, 2011 -- Panasonic has an annual net loss of $ US5.5 billion, its largest projected a decade, as he put on a costly restructuring of loss-making television business in the attack.

Panasonic accelerates the pace of restructuring, as it races to shake off losses in its television unit - a problem it shares with rival Sony - and strips of overlapping business after its acquisition of subsidiaries Sanyo.

In April, Sony said would cut 17,000 jobs by March 2013, but the Japanese electronics giant announced on Monday its goal of trimming now expects its workforce to 350,000 or less to achieve, a year earlier than planned.

Panasonic said it will stop liquid crystal panel production at its plant Mobara near Tokyo and cancel its plans to ship plasma panel manufacturing facilities in Shanghai to begin production there, as to make a profit on TVs in its next fiscal year turn aims.

The rising yen makes it more difficult for Sony to compete with the likes of Samsung Electronics.

The quarterly loss, which will be its second largest ever, compares with the company's previous forecast for a net profit of ¥ 30000000000 in the year to March 2012 and last year's net profit of ¥ 74,000,000,000th

The company's shares closed 2.1% lower, before the results. They have fallen 31% so far this year, compared with a 13% decline in the broader market.

The company lowered its full-year operating profit forecast to 130 billion yen from 270 billion yen.

This is far below market expectations of 225 billion yen profit, interviewed based on the average estimate of 21 analysts by Thomson Reuters.

In addition, lowered its estimate for annual TV sales by 19 million sets of 25 million

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