OSAKA (Kyodo) Consumer electronics giant Panasonic Corp. has made Sanyo Electric Co. and Panasonic Electric Works Co. wholly owned units, creating a huge electronics group comprising some 380,000 employees.
To succeed, the Osaka-based company must capitalize on Sanyo's strengths — home electronics and batteries — while adding to Panasonic Electric's lineup of lighting products, home appliances and building materials.
One litmus test for success will be the fast-growing Vietnamese market, where Sanyo's home appliances are popular. Plans are in place to phase out the Sanyo brand name by next April.