Sharp Corp. on Wednesday named Takashi Okuda as its new president after forecasting a record annual loss amid slumping prices for its Aquos televisions, an economic slowdown and a tax charge.
Okuda, 58, currently an executive officer, will replace Mikio Katayama, 54, effective April 1, the Osaka-based company said in a statement.
Sharp, the nation's largest maker of liquid-crystal-display panels, joins rivals Sony Corp. and Panasonic Corp. in naming new leaders after falling TV prices and a strong yen led them to forecast ever-worsening earnings.
Sharp expects a ¥290 billion net loss in the year ending March 31, the company said Feb. 1, reversing an earlier prediction for a ¥6 billion profit.
The electronics maker, founded in 1912, plans to halve output at its largest TV panel factory in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture. In April, Sharp reduced production of TV panels at its two biggest LCD plants.
Rating & Investment Information Inc. cut Sharp's credit rating by two levels to A-, the fourth-lowest investment grade, from A+ as "it will likely take time for the company to improve earnings capacity," the Tokyo-based ratings company said earlier this month.
Okuda heads Sharp's overseas business and previously oversaw the LCD television business, according to the company's website.
He joined Sharp in 1978, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Panasonic named Kazuhiro Tsuga, 55, to succeed President Fumio Ohtsubo, 66, the firm said Feb. 28. Tokyo-based Sony named Kazuo Hirai, 51, to replace President and Chief Executive Officer Howard Stringer, 70, the company said Feb. 1.