HUBER+SUHNER annual results 2002Tried, tested, and strengthened
The 2002 business year was a year of challenges for the HUBER+SUHNER Group, one of the leading global suppliers of components and systems for electrical and optical connectivity in telecommunications, industrial applications, and transportation. While sales in the industrial and in particular the transportation segment registered strong growth, the ongoing weak level of investment activity in the telecom industry segment had an extremely negative impact on results. Consequently, consolidated group sales declined again, and this resulted in a considerable loss for the company. Thanks to the launch of a comprehensive action plan, the Group has since managed to lower its break-even point substantially and now boasts a much stronger trading position. HUBER+SUHNER is looking to deliver a balanced result in 2003, even if demand remains flat in the telecommunication segment.
The 2002 business year proved to be considerably below expectations for the HUBER+SUHNER Group. Consolidated sales fell 17.5% year on year to CHF 589.5 million. At constant exchange rates, the decline in sales would have been 2.7 percentage points lower. While incoming orders rose slightly in the first few months of the year, the summer period in particular saw a renewed downturn instead of the expected upswing. As in the previous year, weak investment activity in the telecom industry weighed heavily and as a result, market volume contracted even further. During the year under review, telecom sales at the HUBER+SUHNER Group sales fell in line with market trends, by 37.9% to CHF 257.4 million. This subsegment had already lost around 23% in the previous year.
