The company said that Japanese eyeglasses seller Aigan will leave the Chinese market as the impact of the coronavirus dims its hopes for turning a profit.
Already weak earnings in China have been squeezed further by coronavirus-related disruptions that forced temporary store closures.
The Osaka-based company’s Chinese arm has lost money for seven straight years since 2015.
Aigan set up a China unit in 1994 and later expanded to six stores in Beijing and Tianjin, including franchisees.
Also, on Monday, the company projected a group net loss of 425 million yen ($3 million) for the fiscal year ending March 2023 — wider than the previously forecast 315 million yen. It cited losses related to liquidating the Chinese unit, estimating them at 110 million yen.
