Asahi Glass Co. said 31 October 2008 its net profit fell 25% in the first nine months of the year, under the weight of restructuring costs in its North American flat glass operations.
The Tokyo-based…
Asahi Glass Co. said 31 October 2008 its net profit fell 25% in the first nine months of the year, under the weight of restructuring costs in its North American flat glass operations. The Tokyo-based glass maker also warned it will not come anywhere close to its previously forecast target for the full year as it absorbs the impact of the global economic slowdown, which is depressing demand in the housing, automobile and home electronics sectors. Asahi Glass said net profit for January-September fell to JPY 62.8 billion from JPY 83.4 billion in the same period a year earlier. For the full year through December 2008, it now expects net profit to be just JPY 65 billion, down from the JPY 100 billion it previously forecast. The company did not disclose earnings figures for the July-September quarter, but earlier in 2008 it reported 1H net profit dropped 9.2% to JPY 48.02 billion from JPY 52.86 billion a year earlier. The glass maker said 31 October 2008 that nine-month revenue slipped 6.1% to JPY 1.16 trillion from JPY 1.23 trillion in the same period a year ago. Despite the fall in sales, operating profit increased 6.5% during the period to JPY 151.4 billion from JPY 142.1 billion a year earlier.