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Nintendo reports profit in first half [Times of Oman](Times of Oman Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Tokyo: Nintendo posted second-quarter profit that beat analyst estimates, helped by a weaker yen that boosted the value of overseas sales and demand for new games including Super Smash Bros. and Mario Kart 8. Net income was 24.2 billion yen ($224 million) in the three months ended on September 30, compared with a loss of 8 billion yen a year earlier, according to figures derived from first-half results the Kyoto, Japan-based company reported on Friday. That compares with the 5.74 billion yen average profit of four estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The company booked a 15.5 billion yen gain in the fiscal first half from the weaker Japanese currency. President Satoru Iwata is releasing new titles and a lineup of figurines that interact with games to help revive the Wii U game console during the holiday shopping season as overseas sales are bolstered by the sliding yen. Nintendo maintained its annual forecasts as it counts on software to drive demand for hardware and stem a shift by consumers to smartphones and Sony's PlayStation 4. Second-quarter sales fell to 96.7 billion yen from 115 billion yen a year earlier. Nintendo left unchanged its forecast for full-year profit of 20 billion yen and sales of 590 billion yen.Weaker yen The Japanese yen has weakened 2.5 per cent this year amid Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's efforts at spurring inflation. The yen traded at 108.01 against the dollar as of 4:06pm in Tokyo on Friday. Iwata, Nintendo's president since 2002, underwent surgery in June to remove a bile-duct growth. He said he's back working a regular schedule at the company. (c) 2014 Muscat Press and Publishing House SAOC Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info). |