TOSHIBA Corp. forecast a record 550 billion yen (US$4.5 billion) loss and will cut more jobs and restructure businesses that include chips, televisions, personal computers and home appliances following a long-running accounting scandal.

    The projected net loss for this fiscal year includes 260 billion yen in taxes because of a reversal of deferred income tax assets, it said in a statement yesterday.

    The forecast doesn’t include possible impairment of goodwill and fixed assets at the company’s nuclear power systems business because Toshiba is still checking that, it said.

    Toshiba is trying to recover from an accounting scandal that padded profits for almost seven years by halting development and sales of TVs outside Japan, cutting costs at its PC and home appliances businesses and considering alliances with third parties. Job cuts at these segments amount to about 30 percent of the lifestyle division’s work force.

    “Considering how bad things have gotten, this level of restructuring is the least they can do,” said Mitsushige Akino, Tokyo-based executive officer at Ichiyoshi Asset Management Co. “They need to do more, but it’s not as simple as cutting people and closing unprofitable businesses. The questions is what will the results be two years after the restructuring.”

    The company will end consignment of design and manufacturing to outside vendors for its PC business, while concentrating on business-to-business sales and focusing the consumer portion of the segment to the Japan and U.S. markets. Product platforms will be reduced to less than one-third of the current number, the company said. (SD-Agencies)