Japanese electronics giant Sony on Wednesday warned that it expected to slide to its fourth straight annual loss as it reels from the impact of a strong yen, weak sales and severe flooding in Thailand.

Sony's projected annual net loss of 90 billion yen ($1.15 billion) reversed a forecast in July of a 60 billion yen net profit, after the company slumped into the red during the first-half.

The Tokyo-based maker of PlayStation consoles and Bravia television sets has struggled under the weight of a strong yen, while wrestling with the aftermath of the March earthquake and now Thailand's floods that have hit production.

In the second quarter alone, the firm slumped to a net loss of 27 billion yen compared with a 31.1 billion yen profit in the same period a year earlier.

The company's television business has lost money for the past seven years and remains a burden amid fierce competition from rivals such as South Korea's Samsung Electronics and falling prices in the liquid crystal display market.

Sony lowered its LCD TV sales target to 20 million units this year from 22 million and is separating its TV business into three units.

A slowdown in demand in the United States, Japan and Europe has further squeezed profit margins and put the television industry under renewed pressure.

Sony said that six month sales in its consumer products and services segment that includes TVs, personal computers and its PlayStation gaming system were hit by lower demand.

It posted a first-half net loss of 42.5 billion yen compared to net profit of 56.9 billion yen in the same period of the previous fiscal year. Operating profit plunged 81 percent to 25.9 billion yen.

For the full year, Sony forecast sales of 6.5 trillion yen, down nearly 10 percent from its July forecast, while revising operating profit 90 percent lower at 20 billion yen.

It has been a particularly challenging year for Sony.

A massive data breach forced it to shut down its PlayStation Network and Qriocity services in April with more than 100 million customer accounts compromised, in a crisis that quickly followed the March disaster.

The firm was forced to shutter plants in Japan after the quake and tsunami battered supply chains, damaged facilities and dampened consumer demand.

On Wednesday, it said the flooding in Thailand presented similar problems, with its business operations hit by "direct damage from inundation of Sonys manufacturing facilities and difficulty in procuring parts and components resulting from the floods".

It said the flooding will result in a 25 billion yen hit to earnings. Production at several manufacturing facilities has been stopped, while it has been forced to postpone certain product launches.

The rise of the yen has meanwhile hurt exporters, eroding repatriated overseas earnings.

The unit has risen against the euro amid global economic worries, and on Monday hit its highest level since World War II against the dollar, prompting Japanese authorities to conduct their fourth intervention in just over a year.

Despite having forecast a return to the black this year, Sony now faces its fourth consecutive year in the red after suffering a net loss of $3.2 billion in the year ended March.

As it looks to boost profitability, Sony said last week it would buy out its Swedish partner Ericsson's 50 percent stake in their mobile phone joint venture, giving it full control over its increasingly vital handset business.

By taking full control, Sony can integrate its smartphone operation with its tablet, hand-held game console and personal computer businesses to save on costs and better synchronise development of mobile devices.

The move comes as Sony's competitors such as Apple and Samsung forge ahead with closely coupled strategies for smartphones and tablet computers.

Sony's highly anticipated Vita gaming console is due to go on sale in Japan next month.

The March earthquake hit after the electronics and entertainment giant underwent a major restructuring under chairman Howard Stringer -- slashing thousands of jobs, selling facilities and turning to suppliers for parts -- after seeing losses pile up as the financial crisis hit demand.

Sony shares closed down 3.55 percent to 1,520 yen in Tokyo trade ahead of the announcement.