Toshiba Corp. said Friday it returned to profitability in fiscal 2002, buoyed by a strong recovery in its semiconductor business and by cost-cutting measures.

Japan's largest chip maker, which posted a staggering net loss of 254 billion yen in fiscal 2001 when the firm was battered by the global IT slump and forced to carry out massive restructuring maneuvers, reported a group net profit of 18.5 billion yen for fiscal 2002.

It logged a consolidated operating profit of 115.54 billion yen, having posted a 113.58 billion yen loss the previous year, while its group sales rose 4.9 percent to 5.66 trillion yen.