TOKYO -- Nintendo recorded a 48% jump in net profit for the fiscal year ending in March 2008, despite big exchange rates losses, the company announced Thursday.

          Revenues rose 73% in the same period, to an all-time high of Y1.67 trillion ($16.2 billion), driven by brisk worldwide sales of Nintendo's hit Wii console and Nintendo DS handheld games.

          The company also enjoyed a record year-on rise in operating profit from $2.19 billion to Y487billion ($4.7 billion).

          Shipments of red-hot Wii consoles zoomed to 18.6 million units in fiscal 2007-08, compared with 5.84 million units the previous year. Also, sales of Nintendo DS dual-screen portable games climbed to 30.31 million units from 23.56 million the year before.

          For the current fiscal year, which ends in March 2009, Nintendo expects sales to increase 8% to $17.5 billion, while operating profit is forecast to grow 9% to $5.14 billion and net profit, 26% to $3.15 billion.

          Nintendo forecasts that sales of Wii consoles will rise 34% to 25 million units in the current fiscal year, while software sales will skyrocket 48% to 177 million units. To keep up with the growing demand, the company plans to bump up Wii monthly production from 1.8 million units to 2.4 million units by summer.

          The sales target for the Nintendo DS line-up is 28 million units, down from 30.3 million in fiscal 2007.

© Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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