Toshiba Chaiman Quits As Firm Post $6.3bn Loss

The chairman of Japanese electronics and nuclear giant Toshiba is stepping down after the firm said on Tuesday it would book an estimated 712.5bn yen ($6.3bn) loss in its US nuclear power business.

Toshiba chairman, Shigenori Shiga, will step down to take responsibility for the losses in connection with its US nuclear business acquisition, while other executives, including President Satoshi Tsunakawa, will take pay cuts, the company said in a statement.

The huge write down means Toshiba expects to end the current financial year in the red for the second straight year with a net loss of $3.4bn, compared with a net profit of $1.3bn estimated in November, according to its preliminary results.

The company also predicts an operating loss of $3.6bn, although it forecast an operating profit of $1.6bn three months ago. Sales are estimated at $48bn, up from $47bn.

Toshiba said, however, these numbers might change as it had decided to postpone the release of its quarterly earnings for a month for further investigation into its US nuclear power business.

Shares in Toshiba plunged eight percent in Tokyo trading on Tuesday after falling as much as 9.4 percent following the report of the delay.