MUMBAI: Sony's US entertainment unit, Sony Pictures Entertainment, SPE, has announced its financial results for the fiscal year ended 31 March 2004.

The results shows a 40 per cent decline in operating profit to 35.2 billion yen ($321.8 million) for the fiscal year ended 31 March on a 6 per cent decline in revenue to 756.4 billion yen ($6.9 billion) as poor box office performance of SPE's movies Gigli, Hollywood Homicide, The Missing, and Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle triggered a negative impact on its financial results.

Operating income decreased by 23.7 billion yen, or 40.3 per cent, from the prior year (30 per cent decrease on a dollar basis). In the previous fiscal year, SPE had Spider-Man lifting its financial position significantly. According to the company, the lack of a mega-box office money-spinner on the level of Spider-Man contributed heavily to this year's losses.

SPE's results had a mixed effect on its Japanese parent company Sony Corp. The company reported 23 per cent decline in fiscal-year profit to 88.5 billion yen ($808.8 million) but posted a 0.3 per cent rise in revenue to 7.5 trillion yen ($68.5 billion).