Mitsubishi to post first net loss

Japanese trading firm Mitsubishi Corp said on Thursday it would post its first ever annual loss in the year to March 31, totalling 150 billion yen ($1.33 billion), hurt by massive writedowns from a slump in commodities.

Japanese trading firms, like major international oil and mining companies, have been caught off-guard by steep falls in the prices of goods from oil to iron ore as China's economic growth has slowed.

Local rival, Mitsui & Co Ltd, on Wednesday predicted the firm would post its first net loss since it was established in 1947 after the slide in energy and metal prices forced it book 260 billion yen in writedowns.