Mitsubishi Electric has revised downwards its financial forecasts
for the current year, blaming stalled demand for IT products.
The company cut its full-year sales forecast for the period to the
end of March 2002 by 9.3%, to 3.9 trillion yen (£22bn). It also cut
its pre-tax income forecast from a 120bn yen profit to a 20bn yen
loss, and said it now expects net income to be 2bn yen against a
previous forecast of 75bn yen.
The profitability outlook at some of the company's operations is
holding steady but worsening at other divisions. The electronic
devices and information and communication systems divisions - and
particularly the semiconductor and mobile phone handset units - are
in the latter category, the company said.
In addition to the downgrade, the company also said it plans to
close its North American unit, Mitsubishi Wireless Communications,
on 31 March 2002, with the loss of 155 jobs. The company's Japanese
and European units will take over development and supply of mobile
phone handsets for the US.
Mitsubishi Electric is the last of Japan's big five semiconductor
and electronics makers to disclose such a downgrade or
restructuring.
The first were made in late July when NEC and Fujitsu announced
revisions to their earnings outlooks and restructuring plans.
Toshiba followed with the announcement of an earnings revision and
plans to cut 18,800 jobs in mid-August, and by the end of August
Hitachi had made a similar move, announcing 14,700 job cuts across
the company.