Japan Display Posts Worst Net Loss of 247.2 B. Yen

May 16, 2018

Tokyo- Japan Display Inc. logged its largest-ever net loss of 247,231 million yen in the year that ended in March, the fourth consecutive year of red ink, the company said Tuesday.

Japan Display, now under business rehabilitation, posted sales of 717,522 million yen, down 18.9 pct from the previous year, due mainly to intensifying competition with Chinese rivals and sluggish shipments of products for U.S. technology giant Apple Inc.

A cost of some 140 billion yen to streamline the company's operations, including the integration and scrapping of its foreign footholds, also weighed on its earnings.

Apple started using organic electroluminescence screens for its iPhone products made by other companies from last year. This led to a decrease in orders for Japan Display's smartphone liquid crystal display panels, which account for some 80 pct of the firm's sales. Price competition with Chinese and South Korean makers dealt an additional blow with the LCD panel business.

For the current year, Japan Display forecasts a 10 to 20 pct rise in its consolidated sales thanks to an expected increase in orders for high-function LCD panels for iPhones and other products.

The company's plants will "go into full operation in the latter half of the year," Nobuhiro Higashiiriki, chief executive officer of the company, told a press conference, offering the view that Japan Display can see the first turnaround in its bottom line in five years. Jiji Press