Philips slashes 12,000 jobs

NEWS The Phillips electronics group is cutting 12,000 jobs in an attempt to slash costs. The group today reported a net loss of E2.6bn (£1.6bn) in 2001 and said the outlook is bleak in the short term. The worse-than-expected losses compare to a profit of E9.6bn (£5.9bn) in 2000. Analysts had predicted the group would make a loss of around E2.3bn (£1.4bn). Group sales fell 15 per cent to E32.3bn (£19.8bn) during 2001. The company also took E1.7bn (£1.04bn) in exceptional charges during the 12 months. Philips blamed the record loss on the dire state of its core IT and telecoms markets.