Matsushita Q4 profit up 15 pct, sees further gain

By Kiyoshi Takenaka

TOKYO (Reuters) - Panasonic maker Matsushita posted on Monday a 15 percent rise in quarterly operating profit thanks to brisk sales of flat TVs, and forecast a larger-than-expected gain this year, with its mobile phones and DVD recorders also selling well.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co, the world's No.1 plasma TV maker ahead of Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and LG Electronics Inc , benefits from its large-scale, cost-efficient panel production facilities in western Japan.

"Flat TVs will continue to drive growth and we will keep expanding sales of mobile phones, digital cameras, and air conditioners," Makoto Uenoyama, Matsushita director in charge of financing and accounting, told a news conference.

The company, which will change its name to Panasonic Corp on Oct 1, said it expected operating profit to grow 7.8 percent to 560 billion yen ($5.4 billion) in the current year to March 2009, beating a consensus of 527.98 billion yen in a poll of 18 analysts by Reuters Estimates.

"My first impression is 'Well done'," said Motoo Kawasaki, an analyst at Daiwa Securities. "In this business environment where other home appliances makers are struggling with the higher yen and slow sales, their rather bullish outlook could have a big impact on the market."

Matsushita is planning to spend 300 billion yen to build an LCD panel plant in western Japan by 2010 as it aims to boost its presence in the faster-growing LCD TV market, where it has not been able to break into the ranks of the top five.

Matsushita President Fumio Ohtsubo denied a Yomiuri newspaper report that it may tie up with struggling rival Sanyo Electric Co in the first reorganization move among Japan's top electronics makers.

The company had issued a denial earlier in the day but Sanyo's stock price nevertheless shot up almost 7 percent.