Sony share price plummets on profit warning

Shares in Sony fell by 12 per cent to ¥ 1,865.5 (£10.50) at the start of trading in Tokyo last night, following the release of a profit warning by the consumer electronics giant. 

 

It said that losses for the year ending March 2015 could reach as high as £1.32bn, which is four times bigger than the estimate released earlier in 2014. 

 

It listed difficulties faced by its mobile business as one of the reasons for the increase in predicted losses – this has been losing money as a result of stiff competition from rivals Samsung and Apple. 

 

In particular, Sony's Xperia smartphones have not been selling well because of local competition and limited distribution. This is the sixth time that the company has issued guidance on earnings since Kazuo Hirai became chief executive in 2012.

 

For the first time, Sony said it would not be paying an end-of-year dividend to shareholders.