It didn’t take long for Sir Howard Stringer, Sony’s CEO of British descent, to rebound the flailing Japanese electronics giant. Sony, whose products include flat-screen TVs and Playstation consoles, has reported a surprise jump in third-quarter profits, according to the BBC. The positive news couldn’t come at a better time as Sony gears for a major battle with Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Nintendo’s Revolution later this year.
Pre-tax profit for the three months ending December 31, 2005 beat forecasts with a 51% jump to $1.95 billion. The results were lifted by sales of the PlayStation Portable game consoles, offsetting losses at its film division. The figures prompted the company to drop its forecast of a first annual loss in 11 years. “This is an extremely positive result, easily outstripping expectations,” said Mizuho Securities analyst Koichi Hariya.
