Takata expecting red ink from US air-bag recall fine

TOKYO – Takata Corp., the Japanese manufacturer at the center of massive air bag recalls, says fines in the U.S. will push it into the red for the fiscal year through March.

Tokyo-based Takata said Friday that instead of posting a 20 billion yen ($176 million) annual profit, it will sink into a 64 billion yen ($562 million) loss.

Last month, Takata agreed to plead guilty last month to a single U.S. criminal charge and pay $1 billion in fines and restitution related to air bag recalls.

Takata, which also makes seatbelts, has racked up two straight years of losses over the recalls but had hoped to return to profitability in this fiscal year.

Its defective air bag inflators can explode with too much force, sending shrapnel spewing.