Bridgestone's first-quarter net profit falls 18.4 percent

TOKYO (AP) - Bridgestone, the world's largest tire and rubber products maker by sales, said Thursday its net profit fell 18.4 percent from a year ago in the January-March quarter due to sluggish demand in the United States and a strengthening yen.

Net profit slumped to 22.96 billion yen ($220 million; 143 million euros) from 28.14 billion yen in the same period last year.

"Net profit was down mainly because of a rising yen and slowing demand in the U.S.," Bridgestone spokesman Nobuyuki Tamura said.

Revenue rose 3.6 percent to 797.84 billion yen ($7.7 billion; euro5 billion) thanks to steady sales in Japan and Europe, the company said. Sales in Japan account for nearly 40 percent of the company's total revenue.

Bridgestone did not provide U.S. sales figures for the quarter. A strong yen makes Japanese products less price competitive abroad and cuts the value of repatriated profits.

For the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2008, Bridgestone expects a net profit of 90 billion yen ($865 million; euro560 million) on sales of 3.56 trillion yen ($34 billion; euro22 billion).