The
ailing
Japanese
electronics
giant
has
been
struggling
against
a
rising
tide
of
lower-cost
rivals,
particularly
in
South
Korea,
and
has
seen
its
business
suffer
further
from
the
economic
aftershocks
of
the
11
March
tsunami.
President
Fumio
Ohtsubo
concedes
the
company
will
fire
another
17,000
workers
this
year
–
following
a
similar
number
of
layoffs
in
2010
–
as
it
remoulds
its
business
after
the
acquisition
of
smaller
rival
Sanyo.
Panasonic’s
downsizing
plan
is
among
the
most
brutal
in
Japanese
manufacturing
history.
But
Ohtsubo
pointedly
stood
behind
Panasonic’s
plan
to
pivot
away
from…
