Siemens posts €1 billion loss on writedown charge


3 Dec 2009

The electronics and electrical engineering conglomerate Siemens has posted a loss of €1.06 billion in its fourth quarter due to a writedown and predicted the worst is not yet over with markets due to remain challenging in 2010.

The Munich-based company said while its operating profit rose 25pc to €1.923 billion, a €1.962 billion writedown on losses on its 50pc stake in beleaguered telecom equipment maker Nokia Siemens Networks pushed it into the red.

In terms of outlook for 2010, Siemens is expecting only a mid-single-digit percentage decline in organic revenue in fiscal 2010, following a double-digit decline in orders in fiscal 2009.

The company expects total profit of between €6 billion and €6.5 billion and an increase of about 20pc in income from continuing operations compared to €2.457 billion in the prior year.

However, the group stressed that this outlook was conditional on there being no material deterioration in the company’s pricing power during 2010, and said the forecast also excluded major impacts from restructuring, impairments and legal and regulatory matters that might arise next year.

“The market environment will remain challenging in 2010,” Siemens president and CEO Peter Löscher said.

Siemens yesterday announced it had reached settlement agreements with six of its former directors who were tied to a bribery scandal that hit the firm in 2006.

Article courtesy of businessandleadership.com