Tokyo - Sony Corp was expected to see its first operating loss in 14 years in the fiscal year 2008 that ends in March, a Japanese media report said Tuesday.

The Japanese electronics giant was to incur a loss of about 100 billion yen (1.11 billion dollars) for the year due to a stronger yen and slow sales of flat-screen televisions, the Japanese business daily The Nikkei said.

Sony lowered its projection of the year's operating profit in October from an initial estimate of 520 billion yen to 470 billion yen in July and then to 200 billion yen in October.

Tokyo - Stocks plunged more than 4 per cent in Tokyo Tuesday as the market sentiment was dampened by speculation that Sony Corp would incur the first operating loss in 14 years for the fiscal year 2008.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average tumbled 422.89 points, or 4.8 per cent, to close at 8,413.91.

The broader Topix index of all First Section issues also fell 40.9 points, or 4.78 per cent, to 814.12.

Tokyo - Japan's current account surplus narrowed by 65.9 per cent in November to 581.2 billion yen (6.47 billion dollars), compared to the same month a year before, as goods trade fell due to a slowdown in exports, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday.

The balance of goods and services trade reported a deficit of 184.2 billion yen in November.

Japan reported a deficit of 93.4 billion yen in goods trade, down from a surplus of 907.6 billion yen a year before. Exports fell 26.5 per cent to 5.06 trillion yen.

Imports shrank 13.7 per cent to 5.16 trillion yen.

In services trade, Japan saw a deficit of 90.8 billion yen, down 20.4 per cent, as Japanese travelers spent less overseas.

Tokyo - Stocks lost more than 4 per cent in Tokyo Tuesday as market sentiment was dampened by media reports on speculation that Sony Corp would incur an operating loss for the fiscal year.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average tumbled 380.32 points, or 4.3 per cent, to end the morning session at 8,456.48.

The broader Topix index of all First Section issues was also down 37.33 points, or 4.37 per cent, to 817.69.

The world's top auto company, Toyota is in touch with South Korean company POSCO to get steel for its operations. Toyota Motor Corp. is suffering losses due to low sales and has been employing various cost cutting methods to mitigate the impact of global slowdown. Entire automobile sector is facing the heat of global slowdown with significant decline in sales.

POSCO is the fourth largest supplier of steel in the world. It is already supplying steel to leading Japanese auto giants. The spokesperson of POSCO, Ko Min-jin said, "We are in talks with Toyota on a similar deal."

Seoul  - South Korean President Lee Myung Bak and Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso Monday vowed to increase their efforts to stop North Korea's nuclear weapons programme, in close cooperation with the administration of incoming US president Barack Obama.

The two leaders, who met for a bilateral summit in the South Korean capital Seoul, also pledged to work together to overcome the effects of the global recession on Asian exports.

Lee told journalists that he hoped close bilateral cooperation as well as working with the international community would be a major contribution to the recovery of the global economy.