TDK to reduce global workforce by 11,000

Japanese electronic component and data storage maker TDK said it would cut its global workforce by 11,000, or roughly 12 percent, amid cost-cutting measures to boost profitability. The reduction would take place over a two-year period, national broadcaster NHK reported. The group currently employs around 88,500 people, according to a spokesman.
The company earlier reported a 74.3 percent drop in fiscal first half net profit from a year earlier to 6.7 billion yen ($84.4 million). In the six months from April to September, the group suffered a decline in sales of electronic components, which it supplies to sectors such as automakers and consumer electronics firms.