Sony CEO Hirai to step down; turnaround ally Yoshida to take helm

Tokyo

SONY Corp said on Friday that its chief executive officer Kazuo Hirai will be replaced by chief financial officer Kenichiro Yoshida, who is credited with leading many of the changes that have helped the company recover from years of losses in consumer electronics.

Under Mr Hirai, who became CEO in 2012, the electronics giant has cut thousands of jobs and withdrawn from or cut back in areas such as PCs and TVs.