Nintendo in wider-than-expected Q1 loss, but hopes high for Pokemon GO

TOKYO - Japan's Nintendo Co Ltd booked an operating loss in first-quarter, hurt by unfavourable currency rates, although hopes for for long-term growth are running high on the worldwide success of Pokemon GO.

The Kyoto-based firm's first game for smartphones was launched only three weeks ago but has already been responsible for a rise of some 50 per cent in the company's market value.

Nintendo posted an operating loss of 5.1 billion yen (S$65.6 million) for the April-June quarter, versus a profit of 1.15 billion yen in the same period a year earlier, blaming a stronger yen that eats into the value of income earned abroad.

That compares with a Thomson Reuters Starmine SmartEstimate of a 4 billion yen loss drawn from six analysts.

Nintendo maintained its outlook for operating profit to climb 37 per cent to 45 billion yen in the year ending March. Last week it took the unusual step of saying ahead of results that Pokemon GO would have a limited impact on earnings and that it did plan to revise its targets for now.