Bric countries boost profits at Siemens
SIEMENS, Europe’s biggest engineering conglomerate and a German bellwether, beat profit forecasts due to robust demand in emerging economies and said signs for future sales were strong.
Like most of its German peers, Siemens relies heavily on exports of manufactured goods to China, Brazil, India and Russia to power growth, profiting from infrastructure investment in those countries.
Siemens and steelmaker ThyssenKrupp have also benefited from emerging economies’ appetite for German luxury cars, high-end engineering machinery and industrial equipment.
Net profit from continuing operations — which exclude units planned to be spun off — rose 17 percent to €1.79bn (£1.54bn) in the quarter, beating an average forecast of €1.47bn.
“Orders and revenue grew in all regions, particularly in emerging markets,” Siemens chief executive Peter Loescher said, referring to the company’s first quarter to end-December.
Shares in Siemens closed flat at €93.43.