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Sony raised its full-year operating profit forecast on Thursday by 4 percent to JPY 1.33 trillion ($9.01 billion), citing factors including expectations of a smaller impact from US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Sony sees a tariff impact of JPY 70 billion, compared to jpy 100 billion forecast in May. It said the estimated impact is based on tariff rates as of August 1 and that the situation remained fluid.
Japanese companies have been adjusting their expectations of the hit from tariffs as countries strike trade deals with the US including Japan last month.
“There are still some fluid aspects, such as product specific tariffs,” said Chief Financial Officer Lin Tao at an earnings briefing.
The company expects uncertainty in the business environment such as additional US tariffs will have greater impact from the second quarter onwards.
Sony also said it sees a stronger profit outlook at its games business, boosted by sales of network services and favourable exchange rates.
Once known as a maker of household electronics such as the “Walkman” portable cassette player, Sony has become an entertainment behemoth spanning games, movies and music as well as a leading maker of image sensors for smartphones.
The conglomerate reported a 36.5 percent rise in operating profit to JPY 340 billion for the April-June quarter, beating the JPY 288 billion average of eight analyst estimates compiled by LSEG.
Shares in Sony, which announced results during the midday trading break, jumped 4 percent. The stock has gained around 15 percent year-to-date.
Sony sold 2.5 million PlayStation 5 game consoles in the first quarter, a 4 percent rise compared to the same period a year earlier.
Death Stranding 2: On The Beach launched in June to positive reviews with Ghost of Yotei due for release in October.
Quarterly operating profit at the games business more than doubled to JPY 148 billion due to higher sales of network services and games not made by Sony.
“Sony is further cementing its dominance in high fidelity gaming,” said Serkan Toto, founder of the Kantan Games consultancy.
“In my view, Sony is now competing with the PC more than the Xbox,” he said, referring to Microsoft’s console.
The console industry was expected to receive a boost this year from the launch of Grand Theft 6 but the latest addition to the popular series has been delayed to 2026.
Nintendo, which is seen as a potential beneficiary of GTA 6’s delay, last week reported robust early demand for its new Switch 2 gaming device.
Elsewhere at the conglomerate, Sony is preparing to cut its stake in its financial unit to less than 20 percent through a partial spin-off, with the business to list in Tokyo on September 29.
© Thomson Reuters 2025
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