Olympus expects 32 bil. yen group net loss for FY 2011.

TOKYO, Feb. 13 Kyodo

Olympus Corp. said Monday it expects to post a group net loss of 32 billion yen for the current fiscal year through March, a reversal from 3.87 billion yen in profit the previous year, due mainly to an impairment loss in imaging and other businesses.

The company said it expects to post a group operating profit of 36 billion yen, down from a profit of 38.38 billion yen the previous year, on sales of 854 billion yen, up from 847 billion yen, as its business was not much affected by the revelation of a coverup of past investment losses, the company said.

It said it will not pay a full-year dividend.

For the April-December period, the camera and medical equipment maker posted a group net loss of 33.09 billion yen, a reversal from a profit of 5.84 billion yen a year earlier, and an operating profit of 25.96 billion yen, down 19.0 percent.

Its sales edged up 0.1 percent from a year earlier to 624.65 billion yen on favorable sales of its digital cameras as well as sales growth in the information communication business amid expansion of smartphone demand.