Siemens posted a 2.4-billion-euro (3 billion dollars) final quarter loss, mainly as a result of restructuring costs and efforts to root out corruption, the German engineering giant said Thursday, according to dpa. In the corresponding quarter of the previous business year, the company reported a loss of 74 million euros. Turnover in the three months up to the end of September in the 2007-2008 business year increased 7 per cent to 21.7 billion euros, while orders were up 4 per cent at 22.2 billion euros, Siemens said. Chief executive Peter Loescher said the company was sticking to its "ambitious" forecast for the business year ending in September 2009, despite the uncertain economic climate. Loescher said the company was hoping to achieve an operating result of around 8-8.5 billion euros for its energy, industry and health sectors. In the just-ended business year, Siemens posted a profit of 5.9 billion euros, largely as a result of revenue from the sale of auto parts supplier VDO. Turnover was up 7 per cent to 77.3 billion euros. In the final quarter, Siemens said it was forced to set aside 4 billion euros to cover the costs of restructuring and penalties arising from the scandal over bribes paid to officials to win contracts abroad. The company is alleged to have made 1.3 billion euros in unauthorized payments between 2000 and 2006 in what has become the biggest bribery scandal in German corporate history. Analysts estimate the total bill for Siemens might be 2.5 billion euros, including penalties, fines, consultancy fees and the skimming- off of excessive profits. Former chief executive Klaus Kleinfeld left after the scandal broke and was replaced in 2007 by Loescher, who has vowed to clean up the company's affairs.
