Operating income for the quarter ending June, however, fell 12.8 percent to 1.35 billion yen ($17.2 million) as a result of the world economy, price wars, yen appreciation and the high cost of materials for in-car OEM displays, the company said.
Alpine attributed sales growth to multiple factors, including the strength of North American aftermarket autosound promotions and rising worldwide OEM sales of sound, navigation and display systems to automakers. Other factors included domestic demand for aftermarket Perfect FIT OEM-integration systems and for an aftermarket navigation system with the industry’s only 8-inch display. That navigation system just reached the U.S. market.
The company also said it announced an aftermarket navigation system with a 9-inch display for its domestic market.
In North America, aftermarket audio sales excluding navigation “increased in response to sales promotions for head units, chiefly CD players, and sound systems that combine high-quality speakers and amplifiers,” the company said.
In North America’s audio OEM market, “sales to automakers increased on the back of recovering production and sales at Japanese customers and favorable sales at European and U.S. automakers,” Alpine said.
Worldwide, audio-segment sales grew 10.6 percent to 16 billion yen, and sales in the information and communications segment rose 21.6 percent to 39.4 billion. Those sales include OEM display systems and OEM and aftermarket navigation.
Net income rose for the quarter despite falling operating income mostly because of a gain in extraordinary income to 1.19 billion yen from a year-ago 34 million yen. Almost all of the gain came from 1.18 billion yen in “compensation income,” up from zero in the year-ago quarter. Other non-operating income, including earnings from affiliates, also rose 391 million yen from 326 million yen.
For the full fiscal year ending March 2012, the company posted a 1 percent gain in net sales to 202.9 million yen and a 24.2 percent drop in net income to 4.58 million yen. The fiscal year nonetheless marked the second consecutive year of net profitability following two prior years of net losses.
Currency conversions were made at the rate of 78.7 yen to the dollar.
