It is part of a major restructuring drive to cut costs and increase profits at the ailing company.

Motorola hopes to save £440m

Executives hope the initiative could result in savings of more than £440m.

The company employs around 8,000 staff in the UK.

The majority work at manufacturing plants in Scotland, but staff are also concentrated in Basingstoke and Swindon.

Motorola has so far refused to say how many jobs could go in Britain.

Asian crisis hits sales

Motorola's semi-conductor business, which had been coming out of an industry wide downturn, has been hit hard by the Asian economic crisis and competition with Intel. The company says demand for its semi-conductors was "extraordinarily soft."

Robert Wilke, analyst at Brown Brothers Harriman said: "The likelihood of a decrease in global semiconductor shipments has been growing, and Asia in general is an area where Motorola has a substantial portion of its sales."

Analysts had been expecting some restructuring by Motorola but were surprised by the magnitude.

Eric Zimits, analyst at Hambrecht & Quist said: "It's a pretty large charge and a fairly significant work force reduction."

Rescue strategy

Motorola's rationalistion programme has had to be accelerated because the improved profitability and higher sales that the company forecast late last year has failed to materialise. The company has also been hit becuase it failed to move quickly enough into digital mobile phones.

The Asian crisis has hit Motorola hard

Robert Growney, Motorola's president and chief operating officer, said "It is clearly time to accelerate the implementation of our renewal plan.

"We are determined to return our financial results to an acceptable level as soon as possible."

Motorola plans to concentrate its manufacturing operations on its semiconductor products, and messaging, information and media arms, including the pager business. It will take a $1.95bn charge, but hopes to save $750m a year.

Despite having to economise, the company said it would continue to invest in long-term growth opportunities and said that improvement was likely in the second half of the financial year.

Chief executive officer Christopher Galvin said: "We believe that an improving trend of financial performance can develop in the second half of 1998, given stabilised economic conditions in Asia."

Motorola stock, which has been languishing lately, was up $1 at 52.5 during trading on Friday at 1445 GMT.