Sony Trims Loss Forecast Despite Hack Damage

Sony (Swiss: SONC.SW - news) has predicted its annual losses will not be as bad as thought, despite revealing the hacking attack on its film division cost it about $15m (£9.9m).

It is forecasting a loss of $1.4bn (£920m) for the fiscal year ending in March, better than an earlier forecast of $1.95bn.

Sony Corporation (Other OTC: SNEJF - news) said stronger than expected sales of its PlayStation 4 gaming console were boosting its finances.

It also said it was benefiting from solid sales of devices, higher network services revenue and an upturn in its financial services business.

However, continuing decline in its mobile phone business has seen more than a thousand jobs being marked out for closure.

The company has scaled back its operations in China as cheaper handset makers such as Xiaomi gobble up more of the market.

Both Sony's music and movie divisions benefited from a weakening Japanese yen, which improves profit earned in dollars when brought back to Japan.

Results for the October to December period have been delayed after the hacking attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment and are now expected by the end of March.

The cyberattack, which the FBI says originated in North Korea , was in retaliation for The Interview, a Sony film depicting a fictional plot to assassinate Kim Jong-Un.

The Interview has since become Sony's highest-selling online film of all time.