14 DAY TRIAL // Panasonic bet a lot on plasma TV sets, but the results of that go to show that you don't always win at gambling. The company now has to scramble to recover after a very hard 2011.
Like so many other companies, Panasonic has reported its financial results for the year 2011. Unlike most though, it didn't have any good tidings to impart.
Panasonic is in one of those phases where nothing seems to go right.
The situation may not be as grave as Kodak's, but even that company managed to see some progress, however slight.
We suppose we may as well just say it: Panasonic lost $9.7 billion in 2011, which is the equivalent of 7.54 billion Euro.
Investments in both plasma and liquid crystal display panels were massive, but the devastating earthquake in Japan and overall business decline both there and overseas made sure little came of them.
Now, Panasonic is determined to perform some business restructuring, switching focus to OLED TVs, among other things. In fact, the corporation is looking for companies willing to assist it in developing and marketing such products.
Whether or not plans pan out though, Panasonic is not all that optimistic anymore. For this new year, total TV sales are expected to fall from 17.3 million to 15.5 million.
Not to say that all areas of Panasonic's business are in the same situation. Air conditioners and refrigerators have registered a positive, especially in India and Brazil.
Nevertheless, Panasonic has a lot to make up for, and it will take more than a few months for it to do so, assuming it succeeds.
“In fiscal 2012, business conditions deteriorated in Japan and overseas due to multiple factors, such as the concern of the shortages of the electric supply caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake, the disruption of supply chains affected by the flooding in Thailand, the economic turmoil triggered by the European financial crisis, and the historically high yen,” the company stated in its earnings report.