Daiichi revises full-year losses to $2.2 billion

NEW DELHI: Japanese pharma major Daiichi Sankyo, which controls Indian drug maker Ranbaxy Laboratories, on Thursday revised downwards its losses to
215.59 billion yen (about $2.2 billion) for the year ended March 31, 2009, citing changes related to Japan's accounting guidelines. Earlier this month, Daiichi had reported a full-year loss of 335.8 billion yen. Daiichi in a statement said the narrowing of losses is due to accounting guidelines from Japan's National Tax Agency related to loss on valuation of stocks of subsidiaries. As a result, the losses on share valuation from its stake in Ranbaxy too came down. "The Group posted a net loss of 215.4 billion yen (compared with net income of 97.6 billion yen in the previous year) as the result of recording 351.3 billion yen in extraordinary losses due to a one-time write down of goodwill pertaining to the investment in Ranbaxy," the statement said. Daiichi noted that the firm found it difficult for a "402,420 million yen component recorded in loss on valuation of stocks of subsidiaries and affiliates under extraordinary losses in the non-consolidated financial statements of the Company to be treated as a loss for tax purposes".