Sony's net profit declines

Electronics manufacturer Sony Group reported that its net profit fell 23.1 percent to 417.6 billion yen ($2.76 billion) for the April-September period. Electronics and entertainment manufacturer Sony Group included net profit, operating profit, and sales revenues in its comprehensive balance sheets for the April 2023-September 2023 period. Accordingly, it reported that net profit for the April-September period decreased 23.1 percent compared to the same period last year, to 417.6 billion yen ($2.76 billion). While sales revenues increased by 19.3 percent to 5.79 trillion yen ($38.3 billion), operating profit fell 29.7 percent to 516 billion yen ($3.4 billion). The Japanese company, which set a target of 25 million annual sales for its PlayStation 5 game console, was able to sell 8.2 million consoles in the six-month period in question. Sony President Totoki Hiroki stated in his statement, "Selling 25 million units is an ambitious goal and will not be easily achieved," and noted that they see the November and December months, which coincide with the holiday seasons, as critical. The Japanese company's net profit for fiscal 2022 was recorded as 937.1 billion yen (approximately $7 billion at the time), an increase of 6.2 percent compared to fiscal 2021. The entire fiscal year net profit target has been raised The comprehensive net profit expectation for fiscal 2023, which will close as of March 2024, has been increased from the previously announced 860 billion yen to 880 billion yen ($5.8 billion). The targeted profit margin is expected to be positively reflected in demand for console, video game, music, and sensor sales, as well as the depreciation of the Japanese yen against the foreign currency.