Panasonic To Slash 15,000 Global Jobs

Japanese Electronics Giant To Shutter 27 Plants As Demand Plunges For Its Gadgets

(CBS/AP)  Panasonic Corp. said Wednesday it will slash 15,000 jobs and shut down 27 plants worldwide to cope with plunging demand for its TVs, semiconductors and other electronics products.

The world's largest maker of plasma display TVs also announced a net loss for the October-December quarter and lowered its forecast for the fiscal year through March to a net loss of 380 billion yen ($4.2 billion), its first annual loss in six years.

Panasonic joins a slew of other major Japanese companies, including Sony Corp. and Toshiba Corp., in announcing job cuts and forecasting a full-year loss as the global slowdown batters the world's second-largest economy.

The Osaka-based manufacturer plans to cut the jobs - half of which will come in Japan - by the end of March 2010. They amount to about 5 percent of its 300,000-strong global work force.

Panasonic also will shutter 14 overseas plants and 13 plants in Japan by the end of March to adjust production and cut costs, company spokesman Akira Kadota said.

The company lists four U.S. manufacturing plants on its corporate Web site; in Georgia, Kentucky, California and Tennessee, making everything from DVD-ROM discs to vacuum cleaner parts, but it was not clear whether any of the plants would be closed or affected by the job cuts.

Panasonic blamed the dismal earnings results on the global slowdown set off by the U.S. financial crisis, the rapid surge of the yen and sudden price drops. Sales slid in a wide range of products, including flat-panel TVs, DVD recorders, microwaves, lamps and semiconductors, it said.

"The company's business conditions have worsened particularly since last October, due mainly to the rapid appreciation of the yen, sluggish consumer spending worldwide and ever intensified price competition," it said in a statement.

Panasonic reported a 63.1 billion yen ($709 million) loss for the fiscal third quarter, down from a 115.2 billion yen profit the same quarter the previous year.

Quarterly sales dropped 20 percent to 1.880 trillion yen from 2.345 trillion, with overseas sales decreasing 29 percent, and Japanese sales down 10 percent.

The last time Panasonic reported an annual loss was for the fiscal year ended March 2002, when a global electronics slump and massive restructuring costs contributed to 431 billion yen in red ink.

Since then, the company has been shedding money-losing businesses and focusing on key products such as plasma display TVs to turn itself around.

The company, formerly named Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., for its founder, also lowered its sales forecast for the fiscal year ending March 31, to 7.75 trillion yen from an earlier 8.5 trillion yen.

Panasonic will delay by a half year starting production at two Japan plants - one for plasma panel TVs to July 2010, and another for liquid crystal display TVs until January 2010, in response to slipping demand for flat-panel TVs, it said.

The latest restructuring measures will cost an additional 190 billion yen on top of the 155 billion yen Panasonic has already announced for the fiscal year through March.

Rival Japanese manufacturer Sony is forecasting a 150 billion yen net loss for the fiscal year through March. The last and only time Sony reported a loss - the fiscal year ending March 1995 - the red ink came from one-time losses in its movie division, marred by box office flops and lax cost controls.

Hitachi Ltd., NEC Corp. and Toshiba are also all forecasting big losses for the fiscal year.

Panasonic shares rose 1 percent to 1,092 yen. Earnings were announced after trading ended.

[jetranger7]

EVERYBODY - - GO RESEARCH THIS - GOOGLE "BILDERBERGER SECRET MEETINGS" and "OPERATION GARDEN PLOT" OMG - OMG it happening , its happening !!!!!!!!!!

[cpelzar--2008]

According to Mitch McConnell and the Republicans, all we have to do is give massive tax cuts to rich people and all of these jobs would be saved.

Posted by omnibus66 at 08:14 AM : Feb 04, 2009

Wrong McConnell proposed cutting the (2) lower tax brackets of 10% and 15% in half. The last I heard people in those tax brackets are not rich. Also this more of a tax cut for lower income earners than Obama and Pelosi have in their spending plan.

[cpelzar--2008]

It is coming people if the senate doesn''''t put away its partisanship and work together you will see 15 to 25 percent unemployement. Call you rep in congress stop listening to Rush, Bill, Sean, Ann, Glen and the rest of the nut cases they are not economists in fact even conservative economists are saying that 800 billion is not enough.

So the GOP had better come up with a solution to a fillibuster if they want to survive the next election. The days of being given a pass because we didn''''t know are over communications have become to great to get away with this kind of stuff.

LOL...

Want to bet the GOP still don''''t get it.

Posted by antoniof123 at 10:41 AM : Feb 04, 2009

I am against this BS spending plan. I don;t think it will work and will only increase the problems down the road fro our next generations. It is time to get this over with and deal with pain now.

I prefer that if the dems want this so much that they pass it and let the chips fall where it may. I believe if they do pass this without Republican support it will result in a change in congress mid term for Obama which of course is not unprecedented.

[antoniof123]

It is coming people if the senate doesn''t put away its partisanship and work together you will see 15 to 25 percent unemployement. Call you rep in congress stop listening to Rush, Bill, Sean, Ann, Glen and the rest of the nut cases they are not economists in fact even conservative economists are saying that 800 billion is not enough.

So the GOP had better come up with a solution to a fillibuster if they want to survive the next election. The days of being given a pass because we didn''t know are over communications have become to great to get away with this kind of stuff.

LOL...

Want to bet the GOP still don''t get it.

[u-r-right]

When are we going to wake up here? Let''s bring manufacturing back to the USA and prosper.

[whitemale08]

Another casualty of ''globalization''.

What''s even more amazing is how we were tricked by traitorus Democrats like Woodrow Wilson and Wall Street Republicans like Nixon

to forfeit our SOVEREIGN RIGHT to develop our beloved republic by handing over that responsibility to a mob of profiteers on Wall Street in 1913.

When the so-called ''private sector'' takes over there is nothing left in a recession but homeless, jobless people angry at the ''rich elite'' who swindled the tax payer with worthless credit-default-swaps and stupid derivatives.

When our Sovereign National Government takes over there is plenty left in a recession like ''solvent families, broad prosperity, scientific creativity and development, and food for everyone to eat.

The private sector might demagogue the latter as ''socialism'' but they''re wrong because we cannot have a system designed as socialism for the few at the expense of d*mning the masses to a precarious condition.

[omnibus66]

According to Mitch McConnell and the Republicans, all we have to do is give massive tax cuts to rich people and all of these jobs would be saved.

[jon_mccain]

Another country and company living and dying on the backs of the American consumer.