The electronics parts of our company continue to suffer heavily from continued poor market conditions in the telecom and PC-related businesses, |
The joint venture puts us in a clear cost-leadership position in a mature market, |
There is a lack of value creation, particularly around consumer electronics, |
Underlying performance in our businesses has improved as a result of cost controls and better operating efficiencies, which is fundamental as we do not see much of an economic improvement in the near future, |
We see now for several weeks already a consensus around a decline of semiconductor market year-on-year of 26 percent, |
We're pleased that we are keeping our momentum, with strong growth and solid performance across all our main divisions. A strong customer focus, together with innovative products, helped expand our already strong position within healthcare, lifestyle and technology. |
While we are pleased with the progress of the Business Renewal Program, we see opportunities to further strengthen the activities and maximize shareholder value, with the step we announced today, in an industry where scale matters. |
While we remain focused on expanding the company through value-creating acquisitions in our medical systems, domestic appliances and personal care and in our lighting businesses, we'll continue managing our capital efficiently to create optimum value for our shareholders, |