panasonic first-quarter profit up 17%; expects profit from tesla's model 3 batteries by year-end - lithium ion battery cells
Tokyo: Japanese Panasonic reported 16 on July 31.
Up 9% for the first time
As the shift to Advanced Auto Parts began to reward the electronics giant, quarterly operating profits were largely in line with analysts' estimates.
Profit growth comes as Panasonic controls Ficosa International SA, a Spanish car mirror maker, to expand its car sales.
In the same quarter of June, Panasonic began mass production of batteries for Tesla.
The market price of type 3 electric vehicles is $5 (RM21. 4bil)"Gigafactory".
"For the battery of Model 3, the cost in the first quarter exceeded the profit," financial director Umeda Hirokazu said at the earnings briefing.
"As production accelerates next year, we expect the business to contribute to profits.
Panasonic said on April
Profit rose to 83 in June. 93 billion yen (RM3. 25bil)from 71. 81 billion yen (RM2. 78bil)a year earlier.
Compared with 86. 14 billion yen (RM3. 34bil)
In a Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S poll, an average of nine analysts estimated.
The company maintained 335 billion yen (RM12. 97bil)
Operating profit forecast for the third year was 344. 23 billion yen (RM13. 33bil)
Estimates from an average of 17 analysts.
As a supplier of automotive batteries, advanced electronics, auto parts and energy, Panasonic is reshaping itself --
Save home systems to escape the price competition of smartphones and low-cost phones
Profit consumer goods.
The shift, led by kazuiro Tsuga, chief executive of the group five years ago, was initially not enough to offset the loss of revenue from the decline in consumer electronics.
The company is expected to change this year as it will start shipping advanced electronics to Tesla's Model 3 in Nevada and producing batteries to major automakers.
Model 3 marks a turning point in Tesla's transition from niche luxury car manufacturers to mass manufacturers.
The the company plan next year production of 500,000 a car is its 2016 a yield of nearly six times. —