The company also upgraded its forecasts for the full year to December, expecting to post best ever earnings for the fourth consecutive year.

Canon Inc.'s pre-tax profit shot-up 69.4 percent in the six months to June to a record 215.5 billion yen.

Sales rose 10.9 percent to 1.54 trillion yen, "boosted by a significant rise in sales of digital cameras, along with a recovery in sales of semiconductor-production equipment and laser beam printers," a statement said.

Revenue from cameras climbed 34.3 percent to 283.8 billion yen, while office equipment sales, including copiers and printers, generated 1.13 trillion yen -- a 5.3 percent gain.

Digital cameras, which accounted for 59 percent of overall camera sales, rocketed 83.3 percent from a year earlier, according to a Canon spokesman.

The firm also saved costs through manufacturing reforms and by shifting some production overseas.

Canon raised its full-year net profit forecast to 263 billion yen from an earlier projected 240 billion yen. It also upgraded the estimate of pre-tax profit to 440 billion yen from 410 billion yen and sales to 3.18 trillion yen from 3.15 trillion yen.

"The digital camera market is expected to continue enjoying rapid growth and stable demand is projected for full-colour copying machines and laser beam printers," the company said.

SPACE.WIRE