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Nintendo slashes profit forecast after sales slow

Nintendo slashes profit forecast after sales slow

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Nintendo has cut its operating profit forecast for the current financial year by 34 percent, following a third-quarter sales slump and a recent surge in the yen's value. The Japanese gaming company had previously expected to make an operating profit of ¥50 billion in the year ending March 31st, but has reduced that expectation to ¥33 billion (about $292 million today) in profit off revenue 12.3 percent lower than earlier predicted.

Earlier this month Nintendo said it had made ¥42.4 billion yen in the nine months from April to December, meaning the company is now predicting a loss of around ¥10 billion in its final quarter of the year. Nintendo has also revised its sales forecasts for 3DS hardware and software down 13 and 16 percent respectively, though the Wii U hardware estimate is holding steady and software is actually up 17 percent — likely boosted by the unexpected breakout success of Splatoon.

Although Nintendo is still expecting to turn a moderate profit this year, all eyes will be on its unveiling of the upcoming NX platform and the rollout of its first smartphone games. New CEO Tatsumi Kimishima has spoken of his desire to return the company to "Nintendo-like profits."