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Matsushita to post another loss
TOKYO, Japan (Reuters) -- Japanese consumer electronics giant Matsushita Electric Industrial Co said Monday it will post a second net loss in a row for the year ended on March 31. That comes after a stock market rout eroded the value of its shareholdings. But Matsushita, the maker of Panasonic brand electronics, said its revenues and operating profit were still on track to hit targets, lifted by cost cutting and healthy sales of new products, and cash flow would not be affected. It also said it would stick to its plan for a year-end dividend payout of 6.25 yen per share. "We have implemented management reforms, including a reduction in inventories and other assets, a restructuring of operations, and the aggressive introduction of new products on the market," the company said in a statement. Matsushita Electric said it expected a 23.5 billion yen ($195.3 million) consolidated net loss for the year ended on March 31, adding to the prior year's record loss of 431 billion yen. Its operating profit target was left unchanged at 120 billion yen, reversing the prior year's 211.8 billion yen operating loss. The pretax profit figure was cut to 59.5 billion yen from 96.0 billion yen, still a marked improvement from the 548 billion yen loss a year earlier. The revenue estimate was held steady at 7.3 trillion yen, a six percent gain from the prior year's 6.88 trillion yen result. The company will release official figures for 2002-03 and targets for 2003-04 on April 28. Matsushita, like many big companies in Japan, has seen the value of its share holdings, especially in Japanese banks, shrink markedly in recent months as worries about the country's financial woes fuelled a slide in the stock market. The benchmark Nikkei 225 average fell 28 percent during the business year to March 31. Matsushita's share price ended Monday 1.28 percent higher at 1028 yen. The Nikkei jumped 2.18 percent. Copyright 2003 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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