NEW YORK: Mattel Inc, the world’s largest toymaker, reported its first quarterly net loss in nearly five years due to a double-digit fall in sales of its iconic Barbie dolls, sending the company’s shares down as much as 3 per cent in early trading.

Mattel’s worldwide sales fell 5pc to $946.2 million in the quarter ended March 31 due to lower demand for its key toy brands.

Sales of Barbie dolls fell 14pc, while those of Fisher-Price line aimed at infants and preschoolers declined 6pc.

Mattel has looked to newer products to boost sales as children increasingly opt for electronic games and other gaming activities over traditional toys that are decades old.

Barbie made her debut in 1959, distinguishing herself in the mass market for dolls with her fashion model-like figure.

“(Barbie is) still a $1.2 billion business. It is still very meaningful for Mattel and it is very hard to grow a $1bn business,” Morningstar analyst Jaime Katz told Reuters.

In February, the company offered to buy Canada’s Mega Brands Inc for about $460 million to compete with Denmark’s Lego,.

Earlier this month, Mattel launched a new line o toy guns called BOOMco. Sales of its chubby-faced American Girl dolls grew 5pc, slower than in recent quarters.

The decline in sales mostly reflects higher retail inventories entering the quarter and the timing of Easter, which falls in the company’s second quarter this year, Stifel Nicolaus analyst Drew Crum wrote in a note.