Sony's Spider-man 2 is expected to boost revenues

The slide in the currency lifted the value of foreign sales, as well as stoking demand by making goods cheaper.

Earlier this year, Sony warned it was likely to report a loss in the quarter, citing the cost of hyping its latest Spider-man film as the main culprit.

The movie is set to lift earnings later this year after proving a global hit.

Bums on seats

Spider-man 2 has been one of the most-watched films in the US and Europe over recent weeks and already has pulled in more than $300m (�165m) at the box office.

Sony, however, remained cautious about its prospects for the coming quarters and left earnings forecasts unchanged for the year.

"In terms of electronics, the US market is still quite unpredictable, so we've decided to take a conservative view," said Takao Yuhara, one of Sony's corporate senior vice presidents.

The company is facing stiff competition from rivals that have launched new products such as DVD players and televisions.

Sony has decided to delay the introduction of its new products until later this year, hoping to tap into the year-end retail boom.

During the fiscal first quarter, which ended on 30 June, the company said it had an operating profit of 9.8bn yen ($88m; �48m). Revenue for the period was 1.61 trillion yen.

It expects operating profit to reach 160bn yen in the fiscal year ending on 31 March, 2005.