BANG & Olufsen, the Danish luxury stereo and television maker, sounded a warning note yesterday after it cut its profits prediction for the third time in a year.
The company now predicts its operating profits will be about 195 million Danish Kroner (£20.8m) for the year to 31 May, down from its previous forecast of between DKr275m and DKr225m.
B&O said the uncertain global economy had made it difficult to
anticipate market developments, especially in the US and western Europe.
Peter Thostrup, B&O's executive vice-president, said: "The most important reason (for the downgrade] is the weakening sales at the end of our year.
"What we can do is launch strong products, but there is only one way forward and that is to ensure that we are flexible in our cost base so we can adjust."
B&O parted company with its chief executive in January after the group's third-quarter sales fell 15 per cent overall and 26 per cent in its biggest markets: Denmark, Germany and the UK.
B&O yesterday said it had a reduced order book at the end of the financial year, and now forecast full-year sales of DKr4.1 billion, down from its previous estimate of between DKr4.25bn and DKr4.35bn.
Bjorn Schwarz, an analyst at Sydbank, said: "This shows that the outlook for B&O is tough in the short run, at least for several quarters."
The full article contains 249 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
