Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. said Thursday robust sales of plasma display panel TVs and digital cameras boosted its earnings for the third quarter of fiscal 2005, raising its net profit by 39 percent to 49.3 billion yen.
Given the strong results, the Osaka-based consumer electronics giant that sells under the Panasonic and National brands revised its full-year net profit forecast upward by 20 billion yen to 130 billion yen, despite costs related to a massive recall of faulty kerosene heaters that have been connected to several deaths.
During the October to December quarter, revenue rose 4 percent to a record 2.4 trillion yen, according to company officials.