Mitsubishi Heavy To Cut 5,000 Jobs, Forecasts Loss

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. will cut its work force by 5,000, under a new business plan to be drawn up by the end of October. Under the staff-reduction plan, the company plans to cut its total work force to 35,000 from the current 40,000 by the end of 2003-04, company president Takashi Nishioka said. Nishioka also said the company will focus more on energy-related business, including gas turbines and fuel cells, and seek to further expand cooperation with Boeing Co. and Airbus Industries in the aviation business. Mitsubishi Heavy also announced that it expects a group net loss of $500 million for the year ending March 2000, compared to a May forecast of nil profit and an actual net profit of $170 million a year ago.