Toshiba blames loss on chip slump

NEWS Toshiba Group has announced a loss of $194m for the first half of its fiscal year. The results represent a dramatic decline in fortunes for the group, which includes the parent company and over 300 partly or wholly-owned subsidiaries. Last year, it recorded a $78.3m profit for the first six months. A Toshiba spokesman said its main problem has been the slump in the price of microchips, which accounted for 22 per cent of sales. Computer sales were only slightly down, due to a strong showing in the US notebook market.