Inkjet printer shipments declined but sales and profits increased.
The OEM announced that inkjet printer demand “contracted in North America and Japan” but “drifted sideways in Europe”, whilst large-format printer sales “were brisk for popularly-priced models” and “sluggish for high-end machines”, though these sales “gained momentum in the second half as corporate spending picked up”.
Net sales for the 2013 financial year globally reached ¥1.003 trillion ($9.7 billion/€6.9 billion); an increase of 17.9 percent on the previous year, whilst operating income was ¥84.9 billion ($825.5 million), up a huge 299.8 percent from the prior year. Net income meanwhile reached ¥83.6 billion ($813.2 million/€586.7 million), compared to net losses of ¥10 billion ($90.8 million/€65.5 million) in 2012.
The OEM added that net sales in its printing systems business had increased, with “all categories” benefiting from “foreign exchange effects”, with inkjet printer net sales “lifted higher by increased shipments of high-capacity ink tank models” as well as “higher average selling prices”, even despite the aforementioned decline in inkjet printer shipments.
Net sales of consumables also rose in line with the unit shipments, whilst wide-format printer net sales increased “due to a rise in average selling prices accompanying increased sales of high-end units and consumables”.