Tokyo –
said Thursday
that strong camera sales and increased demand for machinery used in the
production of silicon wafers and LCD panels contributed to a more than 15
percent increase in operating profits for its fiscal first quarter.
The company reported an operating profit of 11.3 billion yen
($131 million) for the April to June period, compared with 730 million yen for
the same period last year.
Net profit was 8.15 billion yen ($95 million) in the period,
compared with a loss of 4 billion yen last year.
Sales of d-SLR and compact cameras rose 33 percent from a year
earlier to 4.5 million units, the company said.
Nikon benefitted from a strong uptick in demand in steppers and
scanners, which are expensive machines used to etch circuitry onto silicon
wafers and LCD panels.