Sony Annual Net Profit Slumps, Warns Of Tough Year

Sony said on Wednesday its annual net profit tumbled 36.5 percent on lower revenue from games and electronics products, and warned of a tough year because of the coronavirus pandemic

Tokyo, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2020 ) :Sony said on Wednesday its annual net profit tumbled 36.5 percent on lower revenue from games and electronics products, and warned of a tough year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

While demand for games downloads grew during the global pandemic lockdown, it wasn't enough to offset negatives caused by the international crisis, including a slump in manufacturing, music events cancellations and movie theatre shutdowns.

The Japanese electronics firms said group net profit came in at 582.2 billion Yen ($5.4 billion) for the year that ended in March, with the absence of one-off financial gains recorded the preceding year also factoring in.

Operating profit fell 5.5 percent to 845 billion yen as sales sank 4.7 percent to 8.3 trillion yen, and selloffs on financial markets also reduced the book value of Sony's securities holdings, the group said.

It suffered "significant decreases" in sales of electronics products as well as in games and network businesses despite robust demand for image sensors used in cellphone cameras.

The PlayStation 4 console is in its seventh year and its successor will be launched in late 2020, leaving users inclined to wait for the PS5.

Sales of electronic goods were affected by the coronavirus outbreak, which forced factories to halt production and hit retail sales, the firm said.

Games downloads grew but music business income was hit as the pandemic forced the cancellation of events.

And while demand for image sensors was strong, the virus affected the firm's production as well as sales of its image sensors for smartphones manufactured by other companies in China.

Movie revenue managed to post a rise thanks to 'Spider-Man: Far From Home,' and other smash hits, but the outlook is murky.