Olympus MILC Sales

Will Olympus start making a profit on its camera sales again? Yes, the company forecasts, thanks primarily to mirrorless interchangeable lens models.

Bloomberg reports the company claiming annual sales of mirrorless models will rise to 1 million units, reaching 5 percent share of the global market — and about $68 million in operating profit.

Olympus has posted losses in two consecutive quarters. “With the camera industry’s revenue falling to the lowest level in a decade, amid surging smartphone sales, Nikon has cut prices to lure consumers,” Bloomberg adds. “The single-lens reflex camera market was 20 million units globally last year, according to data by Camera & Imaging Products Association. Olympus’s camera unit accounted for about 14 percent of the company’s total revenue last year and reported an operating loss of 2.7 billion yen in the six months ended Sept. 30.”