Japanese electronics maker Panasonic said Friday that it had made an group net loss of 14.6 billion yen (163 million dollars) for the first three quarters of the fiscal year.

The figure was down from a net income of 65.4 billion yen (729 million dollars) a year earlier.

The company logged an operating profit of 129.9 billion yen (1. 45 billion dollars) over the course of the first nine months of fiscal 2009, down by 49 from fiscal 2008's 254.5 billion yen (2.8 billion dollars) for the same period.

"In the electronics industry during the third quarter, despite visible signs of market recovery in some regions such as China and Asia, severe business condition continued with changes in the market structure including demand shifts to emerging markets and lower-priced products," the company said.

"In this business condition, Panasonic simultaneously rebuilds its management structure while preparing and taking action for growth in fiscal 2010, as the final year of its GP3 plan."

Panasonic acquired Sanyo last year as part of this plan, as it looks to enter the growing market for batteries used in such products as hybrid cars.