Bridgestone Revises Earnings Forecast

Bridgestone Corporation ("Bridgestone" or "the Company") has announced a
significant downward revision for full-year earnings forecasts for its
American unit, Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. ("Firestone"). Firestone
represents 40% of group revenue. Lower sales, along with higher charges
related to litigation, asset write-downs, and a plant closure, led the
Company to expect the Firestone unit to post a loss of $1.66 billion
(primarily non-recurring) for the full year, triple the previous
estimate of a $530 million loss. 
This loss, the current difficult economic conditions, and the threat of
future litigation coupled with the loss in brand equity associated with
the ongoing tire recalls makes a return to profitability much more
difficult, and the Company's new forecasts confirm that rebuilding
Firestone has been harder than initially anticipated. Without a
substantial rebound in Firestone sales, future earnings will likely
remain very poor due to high costs resulting from excess capacity. Any
rebound in sales will, however, be very challenging given the
deterioration of the Firestone brand in North America.
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