Robust sales of Switch software boosts Nintendo's net profit by 25% in first half

OSAKA – Nintendo Co. said Tuesday its group net profit rose 25.4 percent in the first half of the fiscal year from a year earlier to ¥64.58 billion ($573 million) on robust sales of software for its Switch game console. Operating profit grew 53.7 percent to ¥61.41 billion for the six months through September on sales of ¥388.91 billion, up 4.0 percent, the video game-maker said. Sales of software for the Switch game console surged 91 percent from a year earlier to 42.13 million copies after the releases of "Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze" and "Mario Tennis Aces" in May and June, respectively, Nintendo said. The increase in game titles helped lift sales of the Switch console by 3.7 percent to 5.07 million units in the reporting period, it said. Nintendo launched the Switch in March 2017, aiming to revitalize its struggling console business amid fierce competition with rivals in the growing mobile gaming sector.