25 Jan 2012

Sharp fall in profits at Siemens

9:02 am on 25 January 2012

Siemens of Germany has reported a sharp fall in profits after the eurozone debt crisis forced customers to delay certain projects.

Net profit for the final three months of 2011 was 1.46 billion euros ($US1.9 billion), down 17% on a year earlier. Revenue was up 2% at 17.9 billion euros.

Siemens' shares closed down 1.3% by the end of trading on Tuesday in Frankfurt.

Chief executive Peter Loescher said project delays, particularly in connecting offshore wind power, had hit profits but he expected to see a recovery from April.

Siemens makes a wide range of industrial products, including trains, wind turbines and transmission equipment.

The BBC reports new orders fell by 5% in the three-month period compared with a year earlier.

Orders from the energy sector were hit particularly hard, falling 11% despite a sharp rise in orders for renewable energy technologies.