Tokyo - Nintendo Co slashed its net profit and operating profit forecasts for the fiscal year that runs through March 31 after a stronger yen offset robust sales of game consoles, the company said Thursday.

The Japanese gaming company revised its net profit down by 16 per cent to 345 billion yen (3.54 billion dollars) and operating profit by 3 per cent to 630 billion yen from its August estimates.

But Nintendo maintained its sales forecast for the year at 2 trillion yen.

For the first half of this fiscal year, the company said it saw its net profit rise 9.4 per cent from the same period a year ago to 144.83 billion yen.

Operating profit jumped 33.6 per cent in the year's first half to 252.18 billion yen, and sales surged 20.4 per cent to 836.88 billion yen.

Nintendo did not release second-quarter figures.

Operating profits, a company's earnings minus interest payments and taxes, are seen as a measure of its earnings power from ongoing operations. (dpa)