Electronics manufacturer Sony swung to a financial loss in the period April-June, following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan on 11 March that affected production at its factories.
The Tokyo-based company reported a net loss of 15.5bn yen (€138.7m) for the quarter, which is a decrease from the 25.7bn yen (€230m) profit during the same time a year ago.
Sony also lowered its profit forecast for the fiscal year ending March 2012 to 60bn yen (€537m), from an original projection of a profit of 80bn yen (€716m) .
Sales and profit “were mainly affected by the negative impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake, as well as the deterioration of the electronics business environment, and unfavourable exchange rates”, the company said.
Sony reported sales of 732bn yen (€6.55bn) during the first quarter, a 17.9pc decline from the same period a year earlier.
The company said various factors had contributed to the drop, such as falling prices of liquid crystal display (LCD) TVs.
Sony also said the cyber attacks on its PlayStation Network, and network services for Qriocity and Sony Online Entertainment earlier this year which led to network services being temporarily shut down, had led to higher costs to cover items such as improved security measures.
