Sony shares tank on fresh profit warning

Japanese giant expecting a 230 billion yen loss for the year, more than four times its earlier forecast

Sony shares plunged 12% at the open in Tokyo after the electronics giant warned it would lose $2.14 billion this fiscal year, more than four times its earlier forecast (GETTY IMAGES)

Shares in Sony plummeted more than 12 per cent in Tokyo trading after the struggling Japanese electronics giant admitted its annual loss will be almost five times bigger than its earlier prediction.

Sony’s warning of its impending 230 billion yen (£1.3 billion) loss comes after its mobile phones were about as popular as landlines in the desert, forcing it to shed 180 billion yen from the value of its mobile division.

The firm’s Xperia smartphones have been flailing in the face of tough competition from rivals Samsung and Apple, and in the crucial US market, Sony has struggled because it has few tie-ups with carriers.

The Japanese firm is now predicting a 230 billion yen loss for the year ending March 31, versus its previous forecast for a 50 billion yen loss. It expects an operating loss of 40 billion yen instead of a 140 billion yen profit flagged in July.

The warning is the sixth in the troubled two-year tenure of chief executive Kazuo Hirai as he attempts to turnaround its electronics division which consists of mobile, gaming and imaging divisions. Hirai also said the firm would not pay a year-end dividend for the first time. Shares in Sony fell to 1865.5 yen (1050p) a piece.