Siemens Asia plans on hold
German engineering giant Siemens has been forced to delay a number of projects in Asia and raise provisions as the financial meltdown continues in the region.
President of Siemens' Production and Logistics System Group, Manfield von Raven, said some Siemens projects in Indonesia and South Korea had been postponed by six to nine months.
Mr von Raven said no existing projects had been cancelled, but the group had increased provisions for potential losses in the region.
He declined to elaborate amounts, saying the group had several hundred million dollars in reserves.
'Siemens has already touched on the so-called Asian crisis several times . . . we will have to make cuts for a short period which will, however, be compensated by increased growth in other areas,' Mr von Raven said.
Siemens opened a regional headquarters in Hong Kong yesterday to oversee sales, purchasing, project handling and servicing here and in the mainland.
Mr von Raven said sales revenue in the Asia-Pacific region increased by 13 per cent and new orders rose by 46 per cent in the 12 months to last September.
Mr von Raven said the production and logistics group, which has a world market share of 12 per cent, planned to double its sales in the region and achieve an annual growth rate of 28 per cent.
For Siemens' Hong Kong arm, managing director Wilhelm Gattinger said the company had enjoyed an annual growth rate of 34 per cent for the past eight years but this would drop for the first time this year.
Mr Gattinger said the company would still reach the forecast turnover and net profit.
