Canon camera sales boost earnings to first full-year net profit

The Asia Nikkei is reporting Canon’s camera sales made a surprising comeback in 2017, with its first full-year net profit in three years.

“The Tokyo-based manufacturer of office equipment and digital cameras reported a 61% upswing in group net profit to 241.9 billion yen ($2.22 billion) for the year ended Dec. 31. The figure is expected to grow another 16% in the fiscal year just begun, though businesses such as medical care and industrial printing appear to still be finding their footing.”

Digital cameras and multifunction devices drove much of the growth, according to chairman and CEO Fujio Mitarai.

The article added the digital camera market rose for the first time in five years: “Healthy sales of mirrorless cameras propelled Canon to a 22% operating profit gain in a segment that had been on an uninterrupted decline. The surprise turnaround left supply nearly unable to catch up with demand at one point, and a major camera plant in Nagasaki Prefecture is still working to ramp up output.”