ABB, the Swedish-Swiss technology group, saw orders for robotics and automation equipment decrease in the third quarter. The slowdown in the automotive industry and the weakening economies in Europe, the United States and China made buyers of the products more cautious, according to a trade report on Wednesday.
The total number of orders fell by 1 percent to nearly $ 6.7 billion. The robotics and automation division contracted by 16 percent. ABB is currently led by Peter Voser, the former CEO of Shell who is preparing the company for his successor Björn Rosengren. He will take the helm in March.
Below the line ABB saw the profit fall to 515 million dollars. That was $ 603 million a year earlier. The decrease was partly due to a large depreciation on a part that is sold to Hitachi in Japan. ABB sales fell by 3 percent to $ 6.9 billion. ABB repeated the objectives for the whole year.