Loss-making Siemens sacks managers

Siemens: still suffering from tech slowdown

German engineering company Siemens has got rid of three divisional chiefs and is threatening to cut more jobs after recording a surprise third quarter loss.

After announcing the 489m euro (£301m) loss - against expectations of a narrow profit - the company warned its full year figures will fall short of expectations.

Five of its 13 units lost money in the quarter.

The biggest damage to Siemens' finances was dealt by the networks unit, which with the mobile phone unit lost 1.1bn euros.

The units have suffered along with other communications equipment makers as telecoms companies struggle with huge debts from the $100bn they spent on next-generation mobile phone licences last year.

"No taboos"

The company's chief executive, Heinrich von Pierer, said further "corrective measures" were necessary, following job cuts and other restructuring moves earlier this year.

Von Pierer said that he will look for cuts totalling an extra 800m euros in networks and 400m euros in mobile phones in order to hit the company's profit targets for 2003.

The programme will see "no taboos", he said, in the effort to improve Siemens' margins - the ratio of operating profit to sales - which were just 5.3% in 2000.