The site - which manufactures DVD players and microwaves - is based at Llay, near Wrexham.

Sharp blame a decline in the VCR market

Two hundred of the redundancies will be part-time workers at the factory, which employs an estimated 840 staff.

Company managers have blamed the cutbacks on growing price competition from imports and a decline in demand for video recorders.

The firm has also pointed to increasing manufacturing costs in the UK and increasing difficulties in sourcing competitively priced components in the UK and Europe.

Sharp shed 60 jobs in October 2000 as part of a reorganisation of its product line.

The electronics industry has suffered heavy cutbacks

Welsh Assembly Economic Development Minister Andrew Davies said the decision was "regrettable".

"I have instructed officials and the Welsh Development Agency to work with the company and their unions to do all we can to help those losing their jobs to find new work quickly," he said.

Ian Lucas, MP for Wrexham, said the news was "very upsetting and distressing" for the workers affected.

"I will be doing all I can to work with the unions to find workers alternative employment.

"I am hopeful, because there are opportunities on the industrial estates in the area and that employees will not be out of work for too long."

Janet Ryder, Plaid Cymru AM for North Wales, said: "The knock on effects of redundancies on this scale will be horrendous.

"We are witnessing the decline of our modern high-tech industries and that is a serious worry for me."

Sharp Electronics is the latest electronics manufacturer in Wales to announce major cutbacks.

Panasonic, Sony and Hitachi announced more than 2,000 redundancies at plants in south Wales in 2000.

The news was closely followed by cutbacks by the Telecoms firm Solectron, based in Cwmcarn, which axed 350 jobs in June last year.

Hitachi shed 350 jobs claiming it had lost nearly �20m in the past five years because of the drop in the price of televisions.

This terrible blow today is evidence of just how fragile our economy is in Wrexham

Sh�n Wilkinson, leader Wrexham council

Japanese electronics giant Sony cut 400 jobs at its television plants at Bridgend and neighbouring Pencoed.

The company said it followed a major reorganisation by Sony in Europe to cope with the changes in the television markets.

Wrexham council described the news as a "devastating blow" to the region, which has suffered 2,000 job losses in the past 12 months.

Council leader Sh�n Wilkinson said: "Wrexham's huge dependency on manufacturing does put us in an extremely vulnerable position and this terrible blow today is evidence of just how fragile our economy is in Wrexham.

"I sincerely hope the company can consolidate its position here in Wrexham, through its proposed rationalisation and hopefully re-establish its position in the market place."