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Sharp expects to post $1.94 billion operating loss for the year, score a meager Q2 operating profit
Sharp hasn't quite laid out its Q2 2012 financials, but it has laid down some bittersweet projections. According to Reuters, the Japanese firm hopes to post an operating profit for the current term, but will take a $1.94 billion loss for the year as a whole. This prediction is a tad more dismal then its earlier forecast, which predicted a $1.25 billion loss for 2012. The TV maker also cut its predicted net loss from ¥240 billion to ¥450 billion ($5.6 billion). Sharp still is hoping its cuts, layoffs and mortgages weren't in vain -- and a short term profit for Q2 could be all it needs to vindicate the $4.6 billion loan it took out in September. Sharp also said it was penning in $1.1 billion for restructuring expenses in Q2, hopefully helping it stay on track for its 2014 profitability goal.
Report: Sharp increases layoffs number, aiming for profitability by March 2014
Japanese electronics giant Sharp is reportedly planning a major restructuring to bring the company back to profitability by 2014, as reported by Kyodo News. Said restructuring will see Sharp cut nearly 11,000 (10,966) jobs from its 57,170-person workforce by March 2014 -- just under 20 percent of all employees -- and sell off various assets, resulting in ¥213.1 billion ($2.7 billion) of much needed capital from lenders. Named assets to be sold include international manufacturing plants, and shares in other Japanese electronics company, Toshiba. The company also plans on shuttering its international manufacturing plants, as well as once again cutting employee wages. So, what's gonna save Sharp from more turmoil? A rethinking of its LCD TV business, apparently, as well as a "strengthening" of the company's smartphone LCD offerings. Sharp's also moving away from solar batteries, selling off its US-based solar firm Recurrent Energy LLC. Company prez Takashi Okuda will head up the massive restructuring, leading an "emergency management committee" starting in October. All of this adds up to Sharp expecting a return to profitability by next April. You'll forgive us if we're a bit wary of that prediction, but our best wishes are with those impacted by the chaos.
Sharp posts $1.4 billion extraordinary loss, refocuses on mobile displays
Sharp has reported an extraordinary loss of 117.1 billion yen ($1.4 billion) for the financial year ending March 2012. The company has cited restructuring costs and inventory losses as the causes for the write-down, but also projected that its TV business would lose a further 18.7 percent of its projected sales in the current year. The company has decided to convert some of its big-screen LCD production lines into mobile LCDs as it tries to reassert its dwindling display business. It's yet more bad news after the company sold part of its LCD manufacturing business to Hon Hai, Sony withdrew from a joint venture and refused to deal with Sharp in the future, plus an 86 percent collapse in profits.
