Hitachi to reorganise business structure

TOKYO: Hitachi Ltd said yesterday that it would reorganise its operational structure in April by setting up five new groups, as it looks to accelerate growth in its social infrastructure business and continue overhauling its sprawling operations to boost profitability. Japan's biggest industrial electronics company has been revamping its empire of some 900 firms after it tumbled to one of the biggest losses in Japanese corporate history reported only three years ago under the weight of a high-cost structure and lack of operational focus. !

Toyota aims for almost 10m in vehicle sales

TOKYO: Toyota Motor said yesterday it aimed to sell 9.58 million units worldwide in 2012 after losing its number one spot in the global carmakers' league last year. Last week, Japan's largest carmaker said it sold 7.95 million units worldwide in 2011, down 6 per cent, as it wrestled with a strong yen while its supply chains were disrupted by the country's March quake-tsunami disaster and record flooding in Thailand. But in 2012, global sales of the Toyota brand alone are expected to reach 8.58 million units, with its mini-car unit Daihatsu expected to sell 850,000 vehicles and truckmaker Hino planning to sell 150,000.

PetroChina buys stake in Canada project

SHANGHAI: State-owned PetroChina said it has agreed to take a 20 per cent stake in a Canadian shale gas project owned by Royal Dutch Shell, China's latest acquisition of North American natural resources. PetroChina, the listed unit of China's largest oil producer, has signed a deal to buy a share of land and assets in Groundbirch, British Columbia, according to a company statement provided to AFP on Friday. Energy-hungry China has been investing heavily in Canadian and US reserves of the hard-to-reach gas trapped in sedimentary rock, as it seeks to reduce its reliance on dirty coal and oil imports.

Panasonic set for US$10.2b loss

TOKYO: Japan's Panasonic on Friday warned it would see its worst-ever net loss of ¥780 billion (US$10.2 billion) for the year to March, blaming the strong yen, flooding in Thailand, and acquisition costs. The electronics giant said the huge net loss which would be one of the worst ever recorded by any non-financial Japanese company was due to one-off costs it incurred to acquire rival Sanyo, among other factors. "We expect a sizable decline in sales due to the impact of massive flooding in Thailand last October," the firm said. Agencies