HispanicBusiness

Japan's electronics giant Panasonic Corp. is considering selling a plant for the production of liquid crystal display panels and is also to scale down its production of plasma display panels, slashing more than 1,000 related jobs, news reports said Thursday.

Panasonic is to halt production of plasma panels at a plant in Amagasaki, Japan, during this financial year through March 2012, Kyodo News reported, citing unnamed company sources.

Panasonic will make the job cuts through an early retirement system in this financial year while mulling over the sale of its factory for the production of liquid crystal display panels in Mobara city, east of Tokyo, Kyodo reported.

Panasonic's TV business has been losing money for three years and is expected to remain in the red in this financial year as the company has been struggling with the yen's rise, falling retail prices and fierce global competition with other manufacturers such as Samsung Electronics Co.

The yen's strength makes Japanese goods more expensive overseas and hurts repatriated earnings.

Panasonic had initially planned to invest a total of $7.56 billion between the financial year 2009 and 2012 on the TV business but later lowered it to 445 billion yen amid shrinking demand. The company finally decided in April to suspend investments from this financial year onwards, Kyodo said.

Shares in Panasonic were up 1.07 percent Thursday.