Panasonic To Cut 10,000 Jobs As Profits Fall 17.5%

Last week they were teasing a new Lumix camera, days later the Japanese Company announced the axing of 10,000 employees worldwide.

The Company that is well known for their appliances, microwaves, air conditioning and health and beauty products is among several Asian businesses that are restructuring their operations.

50% of the cuts will come from overseas subsidiaries however it’s not known whether any of those cuts will affect the Australian operation.

The Company that initially benefitted from the surge in demand from electric cars and their relationship with Tesla is expected to book structural reform costs of A1.3 billion this business year as part of a continuing management reform to restructure the business with a move to B2b markets.

One area that is set to be hit is in the Company’s sales and back-office divisions, the Company admitted.

Recently the company forecast a 39% operating profit jump for its electric vehicle battery-making energy unit this fiscal year to March 31, 2026, upgrading it to $1.14 billion on expected higher battery and energy storage system sales.

The energy segment, which makes batteries for Tesla and other automakers, delivered US$827.39 million profit in the year that ended in March, missing its own US$853.69 million forecast.

The job cuts, amount to about 4% of its 230,000 workers, with the Company also targeting include early retirement.

Panasonic ES-PV6

Over the weekend Panasonic reported a 17.5% drop in profit for the fiscal year through March $2.5 billion, down from US$3.3 billion in the previous fiscal year.

The company said the slowing global economy and weaker demand for electric vehicles were a factor behind its weak results. But sales of air-conditioners and consumer electronics products held up the Company said.

The company’s chief executive, Yuki Kusumi, told reporters his heart felt heavy in announcing the job cuts. Panasonic did not mention U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff policies as a factor behind its drop in profit.

Panasonic forecast that its profit will improve by at least US$1 billion by the fiscal year through March 2027, and by $2.1 billion by the fiscal year through March 2029.

That will be achieved through management reform, closure of unprofitable businesses and building a system that’s more responsive to changes in the business environment, officials said.

But the turnaround will take time, and profit will slip further in this fiscal year.

For the fiscal year through March 2026, Panasonic is projecting a US$2.1 billion profit from $54 billion in sales.